INDUSTRY

New SFI-X Project Extends Scalability of SERDES-Framer Interfaces to 100 Gbps: The OIF concluded their second quarterly meeting last month with a new project and an open invitation to the industry to join in paving the road to 100 Gbps. The OIF has launched a SERDES Framer Interface SFI-X project that will define a scalable interface from an optical module to a framer device for line rates from 40 Gbps to 100 Gbps and beyond. The SFI-X project forms an important contribution to the requirements for transport of high-speed data via the OIF’s Common Electrical Interface (CEI). The current, ongoing CEI-25 project establishes electrical signaling rates for high-speed backplanes. Jack Waters, Chief Technology Officer for Level 3 Communications addressed the OIF members at last month’s quarterly meeting, “Traffic continues to grow at high rates and the industry can’t afford to wait. 100G is needed very soon. I challenge the members of the OIF to move the industry forward and smooth the economic and technical development of 100G.” The next generation SFI-X will support the aggregation and deskewing of 4-16 data lanes at CEI (6 - 11G) or future CEI-25 (20 - 25G) signal rates. The SFI-X project is an extension of the prevalent OIF SFI-4 specification for 10 Gbps interfaces. SFI-X is targeted to support the 100G work being addressed by standards bodies like IEEE 802.3 HSSG and ITU-T, and forums like ATIS and the Ethernet Alliance. “The OIF’s role is to perform a gap analysis of the missing elements required to bring 100G technology to market,” said Steve Joiner of Finisar and OIF Vice President of Marketing. “The OIF member companies are beginning to identify the gaps and to look for ways to foster the rapid, cost-effective development of new technologies for optical internetworking.” The OIF has several planned sessions at its third quarter meeting to present members with a snapshot of the current status of 100 Gbps optical networking standards development and to begin defining next steps. Vendors interested in participating in this work and helping to develop implementation agreements to bring 100 Gbps to market are invited to contact the OIF. Companies interested in speaking with an OIF board member should direct inquiries to Andi Kosich at akosich@oiforum.com. The Forum’s third quarter meeting is August 13 -17 in Somerset, New Jersey.