10Gbit/s optical transceiver from C-MAC

It is to be based around electro-optical transducers from Ultra Communications, a Californian spin-out of Peregrine Semiconductor.

“This device will be capable of servicing the needs of all existing and planned avionics optical data bus requirements for the foreseeable future,” said C-MAC. “Our transceiver will initially provide four transmit and four receive optical channels each running at 2.5Gbit/s using Ultra Communications patented optical core. It will be packaged in a hermetic enclosure and qualified to international military and space standards and the evolving JEDEC standards.” Ultra’ electro-optic engine is unique, according to C-MAC head of technology Bob Hunt.

“Ultra Communications is the only company with a product that has got feedback control within it so we can maintain output power and wavelength, plus it allows bit error rate detection and correction, and it has optical time-domain reflectometry,” he told Electronics Weekly. This last feature will allow C-MAC’s on-device microcontroller to automatically adjust the laser output to compensate for certain fibre characteristics. The module will be based on a low-temperature co-fired ceramic substrate (LTCC), and along with the optical core and MPU will be, co-developed with Ultra, a laser driver and photodiode trans-impedance amplifier.

LTCC is a C-MAC speciality capability, in which up to 75 layers of ceramic tape with individual via and track patterns can be stacked and laminated to form a single rigid structure – signal integrity up to 40Gbit/s is claimed. “Because we can both formulate and process ceramics in house, we can customise their electrical and physical properties to suit particular applications,” said the firm.

“We believe C-MAC’s MIL-PRF 38534 hybrid capability and our optical engine roadmaps are a perfect fit for the expanding high bandwidth data rate needs of satellites and avionics,” said Chuck Tabbert, Ultra’s v-p sales and marketing. He predicts the firms will collaborate on further products: “This is only the beginning.

The final product should be sampling next June.

The 10Gbit/s transceiver follows C-MAC’s STANAG 3910 optical transceiver employed on Eurofighter. Ultra Communications develops high data-rate photonic components for harsh environments. Its core competencies are mixed-signal ASIC design, micro-optics, precision flip-chip bonding, and packaging. The diagram shows Ultra’s quad transceiver technology – based on double sided mounting on a transparent silicon-on-sapphire substrate.