Next-gen data center switches are demanding denser fiber-to-chip coupling solutions to support the significant increase in fiber density necessary to support transceivers and optical tiles operating at 800G and beyond. The required optical interconnection densities for these switches are starting to surpass what is achievable with standard fibers, triggering the need for fiber and connectivity innovations. For example:
- More fibers are needed per mm width in edge fiber-to-chip coupling using parallel optical architectures
(e.g. 51 Tb/s switches are being designed with more than 1,000 fibers per circuit pack) - Less height is needed from 90-degree FAUs used in surface fiber-to-chip coupling (e.g. some fiber-to-chip coupling requires 90-degree FAUs with limited vertical space of only a few millimeters)
By leveraging Corning’s Reduced-Clad Bend-Insensitive (RCBI) fiber and expertise in micro-optics manufacturing and glass we have developed a new ultra-compact FAU designed to help switch manufactures solve bandwidth and density bottlenecks in data center switches.
Our ultra-compact FAU is:
• 35% denser for fibers in a given FAU width (e.g. 72f < 9 mm width for ROADMs)
• 50% height from tighter radius in 90-degree FAUs (e.g. < 4 mm height for DC TRX)
• Superior core pitch tolerance for improved performance in high fiber count designs
• Highly Customizable
