Four 10Gbit/s Links Bundled On a Single Wavelength: ADVA Optical Networking has successfully deployed its Fiber Service Platform (FSP) 3000 in the German Research Network (Deutsches Forschungsnetz, DFN) within the framework of the Vertically Integrated Optical Testbed for Large Applications (VIOLA) research project. Installed in the testbed, the optical system carries data for multiple services at a speed of 40Gbit/s. To deliver this performance, four 10Gbit/s Ethernet (10GbE) signals were bundled on the 35km test line between St. Augustin and Cologne, Germany. The ADVA FSP 3000 system then transfers the data over a single 40Gbit/s optical wavelength. VIOLA is a collaborative project involving universities, research institutes, industrial companies and the DFN organization. Its aim is to trial new network technologies and new forms of network intelligence in conjunction with integrated, high-end applications in an optical test environment, thereby delivering to its project partners a deeper technical understanding for future generations of networks. In the optical testbed created for the VIOLA project, high-speed data transfer was established to test and optimize grid computing applications with high transmission rates. The testbed also enabled complex simulations to be performed across multiple sites. The ADVA FSP 3000 achieves transmission of four 10GbE signals via a single 40Gbit/s wavelength using time division multiplexing (TDM) technology. In addition, a Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) system provides further scalability for up to 80 wavelengths per fiber. As a result, one sole optical fiber can accommodate a large number of 40Gbit/s channels. For example, 80 such channels would add up to a total capacity of 3.2 Terabits per second (Tbit/s) -- more than enough to eliminate the bottlenecks inherent in many existing optical networks. "ADVA Optical Networking has impressively demonstrated the capabilities of its 40Gbit/s solution in our research network," stated Ferdinand Hommes, project leader at Germany's Fraunhofer Institute for Intelligent Analysis and Information Systems (IAIS). "We now have proof positive that sophisticated nx10Gbit/s and 40Gbit/s applications are reality today, especially in a research context. Grid computing applications are just one example. Others are complex scientific simulations and calculations, for which computing power at different locations can now be pooled across high-speed optical networks." "40Gbit/s speeds are becoming more and more important to large enterprises and research & education networks. ADVA Optical Networking's solution enables seamless migration from 2.5Gbit/s via 10Gbit/s to 40Gbit/s," added Dieter Will, vice president business management enterprise at ADVA Optical Networking. "We have installed many WDM networks based on 10Gbit/s wavelengths that are already 40Gbit/s-capable and are therefore ideally equipped for future expansion. Customers can upgrade to 40Gbit/s channels very efficiently and while in-service, without having to modify the existing equipment or infrastructure."