The Optical Internetworking Forum's Physical and Link Layer Working Group (PLL WG) designated a new work project to address 100G long-haul DWDM. This project will foster the development of an ecosystem where service providers, data and optical networking equipment vendors, optical module and subsystem vendors, and underlying component providers will work together to accelerate the availability of high performance, cost-effective long distance transmission solutions for 100G.

The Optical Internetworking Forum's Physical and Link Layer Working Group (PLL WG) designated a new work project to address 100G long-haul DWDM. This project will foster the development of an ecosystem where service providers, data and optical networking equipment vendors, optical module and subsystem vendors, and underlying component providers will work together to accelerate the availability of high performance, cost-effective long distance transmission solutions for 100G. 

The 100G long-haul project will result in a DWDM transmission implementation agreement (IA) focused on a specific modulation format and receiver approach. It will seek to reach agreement on a Forward Error Correction (FEC) algorithm suitable for the long-haul 100G application. This implementation agreement will complement and build upon the work already underway defining 100 G Ethernet in the IEEE, and the new 100G level of the Optical Transport Hierarchy (OTH) in the ITU-T.

"With network element vendors already in development for 100G, we will select an implementation approach supported by a critical mass within the industry," said David Stauffer, of IBM and the OIF's PLL WG chair. "We see an immediate need to focus on a solution for long-distance DWDM."

Additionally, while at the Forum's quarterly meeting this month, members of the PLL WG adopted baseline requirements for an electrical specification for 25 Gbps backplane (long reach) interfaces. This follows the prior adoption by the WG of baseline requirements for an electrical specification for 28 Gbps chip-to-chip and chip-to-module (short reach) interfaces. These electrical specifications will be added as additional clauses in the next generation of the Common Electrical I/O (CEI) implementation agreement.

Members of the OIF also participated in a workshop hosted at Telecom Italia Labs. This workshop was the second of a series of workshops on Packet Transport Technology - "Focus on T-MPLS." This workshop provided attendees an introduction to T-MPLS networks, their evolution, the enabling standards, and examples of their application in multi-service, converged networks for business and residential services. Presentations from the workshop are available to the public at http://www.oiforum.com/public/meetOIW050508.html

New Software Working Group Chair
Members of the OIF elected Raj Batra of Emcore to the position of chair of the Software Working Group. The Software Working Group's purpose is to define, publish, and promote software interfaces that facilitate integration between multiple software modules for networking platforms. Software interfaces include application programming interfaces (APIs) and the contextual framework in which they operate.

SOURCE: The Optical Internetworking Forum