Showcases next generation optical test solutions at ECOC 2016 in Dusseldorf, Germany
For anyone involved with researching or developing coherent optical communications technologies, the place to be this week is at the European Conference on Optical Communications, or simply ECOC, taking place Sept. 19-21 in Dusseldorf, Germany. ECOC is the largest optical communications exhibition in Europe and as such one of the most important events in the optical industry globally.
In addition to the hands-on technical demonstrations and technical advice Tektronix is offering attendees in Stand 370, Tektronix is using the event to introduce a number of important enhancements to its optical modulation analyzer (OMA) software. The latest release provides optical research engineers with the ability to evaluate multi-channel coherent modulation schemes with confidence using a single measurement system. Engineers can now calibrate and control multiple OMAs to easily acquire and analyze simultaneous data from multiple channels such as different wavelengths or fiber cores.
A key driver for the software updates is improve the user experience for customers. Here’s how Brian Reich, general manager for Performance Oscilloscopes at Tektronix, puts it:
“This release of our OMA software will improve the multi-channel test experience for researchers developing advanced coherent optical communication and networking technologies such as QAM or DP-QPSK. We are reducing the cost of setting up multiple OMA systems and we’re reducing the time between receiving multiple OMA hardware systems and getting calibrated, synchronized data from those systems.”
The need for multi-channel coherent research is growing with the use of spatial (or modal) division multiplexing that requires an OMA to down convert and digitize data for each channel. Multi-carrier communication applications also require one OMA per wavelength channel when the wavelength separation is more than the OMA bandwidth.
Included in this release is a new visual OMA setup tool that facilitates reconfiguration of the oscilloscopes and coherent receiver front-ends so that the same hardware can be used for many different applications like PAM4 research or increased channel count in DP-QPSK testing. The image below offers a summary of what included in the updated software.
Highlights on the Tektronix stand this year at ECOC include:
- DPO70000SX 70 GHz ATI Performance Oscilloscope featuring the lowest noise of any ultra-high bandwidth real-time oscilloscope available on the market. This instrument is ideal for optical engineers seeking to clarify electrical design performance and accelerate research tied to silicon speed gains.
- Complete PAM4 Analysis toolset running on both the equivalent-time and real-time oscilloscopes from Tektronix. The DSA8300 provides built-in optical inputs and a wide dynamic range in an equivalent-time (sampling) oscilloscope while the real-time instrument, the DPO70000SXplatform, offers industry-best signal fidelity and performance coupled with a scalable architecture that offers “room to grow” as signal speeds continue to increase.
- The OM4245 45 GHz Optical Modulation Analyzer (OMA) has been updated to support simultaneous multi-carrier acquisition capability. This extends bandwidth capability to 60GHz in an OMA architecture and enables customers to perform analysis on dependent carriers: data striped across carriers, single carrier spanning multiple OMA bandwidths, and spatial division multiplexing.
If you’re planning to be in Dusseldorf for the show, please use our online form to book a meeting with the Tektronix technology leadership team. If you can’t make the event, head over to our resource page to learn more about how Tektronix can help minimize time to market for your coherent optical designs.