MultiPhy eyeing 400 Gig after completing funding round

MultiPhy is developing a next-generation chip design to support 100 and 400 Gigabit direct-detection optical transmission. The start-up raised a new round of funding in 2013 but has neither disclosed the amount raised nor the backers except to say it includes venture capitalists and a 'strategic investor'. 

The start-up is already selling its 100 Gig multiplexer and receiver chips to system vendors and module makers. The devices are being used for up to 80km point-to-point links and dense WDM metro/ regional networks spanning hundreds of kilometers. "In every engagement we have, the solutions are being sold in both data centre and telecom environments," says Avi Shabtai, CEO of MultiPhy.

The industry has settled on coherent technology for long-distance 100 Gig optical transmission but coherent is not necessarily a best fit for certain markets if such factors as power consumption, cost and compatibility with existing 10 Gig links are considered, says Shabtai.

The requirement to connect geographically-dispersed data centres has created a market for 100 Gig direct-detection technology. The types of data centre players include content service providers, financial institution such as banks, and large enterprises that may operate their own networks.

In every engagement we have, the solutions are being sold in both data centre and telecom environments

MultiPhy's two chips are the MP1101Q, a 4x25 Gig multiplexer device, and the MP1100Q four-channel receiver IC that includes a digital signal processor implementing the MLSE algorithm.

The chipset enables 10 Gig opto-electronics to be used to implement the 25 Gig transmitter and receiver channels. This results in a cost advantage compared to other 4x25 Gig designs.  A design using the chipset can achieve 100 Gig transmissions over a 200GHz-wide channel or a more spectrally efficient 100GHz one. The latter achieves a transmission capacity of 4 Terabits over a fibre.

ADVA Optical Networking is one system vendor offering 100 Gig direct-detection technology while Finisar and Oplink Communications are making 100 Gigabit direct-detection optical modules. Oplink announced that it is using MultiPhy's chipset in 2013.

Overall, at least four system vendors are in advanced stages of developing 100 Gig direct-detection, and not all will necessarily announce their designs, says Shabtai. Whereas all the main optical transmission vendors have 100 Gig coherent technology, those backing 100 Gig direct detection may remain silent so as not to tip off their competitors, he says.

We assume we can do more using those [25 Gig] optical components with our technology

Meanwhile, the company is using the latest round of funding to develop its next-generation design. MultiPhy is focussed on high-speed direct-detection despite having coherent technology in-house. "Coherent is on our roadmap but direct detection is a very good opportunity over the next two years," says Shabtai. "You will see us come with solutions that also support 400 Gig."

A 400 Gigabit direct-detection design using its next generation chipset will likely come to market only in 2016 at the earliest by which time 25 Gig components will be more mature and cheaper. Using existing 25 Gig technology, a 400 Gig design requires 16, 25 Gig channels. However, the company will likely extend the performance of 25 Gig components to achieve even faster channel speeds, just like it does now with 10 Gig components to achieve 25 Gig speeds. The result will be a 400 Gig design with fewer than 16 channels. "We assume we can do more using those [25 Gig] optical components with our technology," says Shabtai.