Nokia's 4.8-terabit FP5 packet-processing chipset

Part 1: IP routing: Nokia's latest FP5 and router platforms 

Nokia has unveiled its latest packet-processing silicon that will be the mainstay of its IP router platforms for years to come.

The FP5 chipset is rated at 4.8 terabits-per-second (Tbps), a twelvefold improvement in Nokia’s packet-processing silicon performance in a decade. (See chart.)

Source: Nokia, Gazettabyte

Communications service provider (CSP) BT says Nokia’s 7750 router platforms equipped with the FP5 chipset will deliver every use case it needs for its Multi Service Edge; from core routing, MPLS-VPN, broadband network gateways (BNG), to mobile backhaul and Ethernet.

The FP5 announcement comes four years after Nokia unveiled its existing flagship router chipset, the FP4. The FP4 was announced as a 2.4Tbps chipset but Nokia upgraded its packet-processing rating to 3Tbps.

Heidi Adams

“We announced what we knew but then, through subsequent development and testing, the performance ended up at 3Tbps,” says Heidi Adams, head of IP and optical networks marketing at Nokia.

The FP5 may also exceed its initial 4.8Tbps rating.

Nokia will use the FP5 to upgrade its existing platforms and power new router products; it will not license the chipset nor will it offer it for use in open router platforms.

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Nokia adds 400G coherent modules across its platforms

Nokia is now shipping its 400-gigabit coherent multi-haul CFP2-DCO. The module exceeds the optical performance of 400ZR and ZR+ coherent pluggables.

Nokia’s CFP2-DCO product follows its acquisition of silicon photonics specialist, Elenion Technologies, in 2020.

Serge Melle

Nokia has combined Elenion’s coherent optical modulator and receiver with its low-power 64-gigabaud (GBd) PSE-Vc coherent digital signal processor (DSP).

Nokia is also adding coherent pluggables across its platform portfolio.

“Not just optical transport and transponder platforms but also our IP routing portfolio as well,” says Serge Melle, director of product marketing, IP-optical networking at Nokia.

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Nokia shares its vision for cost-reduced coherent optics

Nokia explains why coherent optics will be key for high-speed short-reach links and shares some of its R&D activities. The latest in a series of articles addressing what next for coherent.

Part 3: Reducing cost, size and power 

Coherent optics will play a key role in the network evolution of the telecom and webscale players.

The modules will be used for ever-shorter links to enable future cloud services delivered over 5G and fixed-access networks.

Tod Sizer

The first uses will be to link data centres and support traffic growth at the network edge.

This will be followed with coherent optics being used within the data centre, once traffic growth requires solutions that 4-level pulse-amplitude modulation (PAM4) direct-detect optics can no longer address.

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Nokia targets 400G era with PSE-V coherent DSP launch

Nokia has unveiled its latest coherent digital signal processor (DSP) family, its fifth-generation Photonic Service Engine dubbed the PSE-V. 

Kyle HollaschTwo devices make up the family: the high-end super coherent PSE-Vs and the compact PSE-Vc for use in pluggable modules.

The PSE-Vc chip is already sampling, the PSE-Vs will sample later this year. 

The PSE-Vs, operating at a 90 gigabaud (GBd) symbol rate, supports transmission distances from local data centres to ultra-long-haul and sub-sea networks while the 64GBd PSE-Vc implements the OIF’s 400ZR standard, ZR+ and beyond.

Nokia has also expanded its coherent optics strategy having completed the acquisition of Elenion Technologies. It is now vertically integrated and is offering coherent optics and its DSPs to partners that include module makers and contract manufacturers.

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Nokia buys Elenion for its expertise and partnerships

Nokia will become the latest systems vendor to bolster its silicon photonics expertise with the acquisition of Elenion Technologies. 

The deal for Elenion, a privately-held company, is expected to be completed this quarter, subject to regulatory approval. No fee has been disclosed.

Kyle Hollasch

“If you look at the vertically-integrated [systems] vendors, they captured the lion’s share of the optical coherent marketplace,” says Kyle Hollasch, director of optical networking product marketing at Nokia. “But the coherent marketplace is shifting to pluggables and it is shifting to more integration; we can’t afford to be left behind.”   

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Coherent gets a boost with probabilistic shaping

Nokia has detailed its next-generation PSE-3 digital signal processor (DSP) family for coherent optical transmission.

The PSE-3s is the industry’s first announced coherent DSP that supports probabilistic constellation shaping, claims Nokia.

Probabilistic shaping is the latest in a series of techniques adopted to improve coherent optical transmission performance. These techniques include higher-order modulation, soft-decision forward error correction (SD-FEC), multi-dimensional coding, Nyquist filtering and higher baud rates.

Kyle Hollasch

“There is an element here that the last big gains have now been had,” says Kyle Hollasch, director of product marketing for optical networks at Nokia.

Probabilistic shaping is a signal-processing technique that squeezes the last bit of capacity out of a fibre’s spectrum, approaching what is known as the non-linear Shannon Limit.

“We are not saying we absolutely hit the Shannon Limit but we are extremely close: tenths of a decibel whereas most modern systems are a couple of decibels away from the theoretical maximum,” says Hollasch.

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Has coherent optical transmission run its course?

Feature: Coherent's future

Three optical systems vendors share their thoughts about coherent technology and the scope for further improvement as they look two generations ahead to symbol rates approaching 100 gigabaud   

Optical transmission using coherent detection has made huge strides in the last decade. The latest coherent technology with transmitter-based digital signal processing delivers 25x the capacity-reach of 10-gigabit wavelengths using direct-detection, according to Infinera.

Since early 2016, the optical systems vendors Infinera, Ciena and Nokia have all announced new coherent digital signal processor (DSP) designs. Each new generation of coherent DSP improves the capacity that can be transmitted over an optical link. But given the effectiveness of the latest coherent systems, has most of the benefits already been achieved?

Source: Infinera

“It is getting harder and harder,” admits Kim Roberts, vice president, WaveLogic science at Ciena. “Unlike 10 years ago, there are no factors of 10 available for improvement.”

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