Redondo Beach, Calif. - Sierra Monolithics Inc. has unveiled a multirate serializer/deserializer (serdes) chip set for OC-768 optical communications.
The chip set is fabricated using IBM Corp.'s silicon germanium (SiGe) bipolar CMOS process technology. It consists of the SMI4021, a 16:1 multi-rate multiplexer (mux) with an integrated clock multiply unit (CMU), and the SMI4031, a 1:16 multirate demultiplexer (demux) with an integrated clock and data recovery (CDR) unit that can operate continuously from 37 Gbits/second to 46 Gbits/s.
David Rowe, co-founder and chief technology officer, said the 16:1/1:16 mux/demux "leapfrogs" earlier 4:1/1:4 prototypes. The single-chip mux eliminates the proprietary interfaces required by CMOS/indium phosphide (InP) solutions.
The integrated CMU and 10-deep FIFO buffer in the mux handle timing drift and wander between data and reference clocks. The demux includes a CDR unit, voltage-controlled oscillator and a phase detector.
Other features include a pseudo-random-bit sequence generator and receiver, temperature sensors and real-time diagnostics. System-side I/O is compatible with Optical Internetworking Forum (OIF) serdes-to-framer (SFI)-5 specifications, and I/O on the line side is common-mode logic-compatible.
Sierra Monolithics has been a design house that developed radio frequency integrated circuits for makers of optical communications and wireless equipment. This product is the first to be marketed under the company's own label.
The chip set is sampling now and should be in production in the fourth quarter. It's priced at $3,400 in quantities of 10,000.
Call (310) 379-2005
www.monolithics.com
EETInfo No. 611