NeoPhotonics and Inphi Begin Shipping High Dynamic Range ICR (HD-ICR) for 100G Colorless Coherent

NeoPhotonics and Inphi announced shipment to multiple customers of a new High Dynamic Range-Integrated Coherent Receiver (HD-ICR) in production volume.

The HD-ICR couples the high dynamic range, low noise and high input current handling capabilities of the Inphi IN3250TA TIA with the high sensitivity of the NeoPhotonics photodiodes and is designed to deliver the high performance that is necessary for next generation 100G colorless coherent transmission systems.

The companies said "colorless" optical transmission is more efficient because add/drop ports are not limited to fixed predetermined wavelength channels, meaning any wavelength channel can enter or exit any port.  However, colorless operation improves the efficiency and cost of coherent transport networks but places additional requirements on receiver performance.  For colorless applications where the remaining channels are not filtered out optically, the incoming signal power can vary significantly depending on how many other channels are present, resulting in up to 100 times higher optical power falling on the receiver than in the single channel case.  For this case, NeoPhotonics integrates a PIC variable optical attenuator that is designed to set the incoming optical power at the optimum point to avoid saturating the detector, while the high dynamic range and low noise of the Inphi IN3250TA enables the desired signal to be reproduced with high fidelity.

For the case where a single wavelength enters the receiver, the high sensitivity of the HD-ICR may eliminate the need for optical pre-amplifier in front of the receiver -- reducing cost and simplifying operation.

“We are pleased to add the HD-ICR to our extensive line of PIC based intradyne coherent receivers and we feel that working closely with Inphi has effectively made available to our customers the high performance of both companies’ technology,” said Tim Jenks, Chairman and CEO of NeoPhotonics. “Our next-generation 100G optical solutions coupled with Inphi’s 100G electronic chips can help us meet the needs of our customers in next generation 100G systems and beyond.”

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