infinera infinite capacity engine - brochure

INFINERA INFINITE CAPACITY ENGINETaking Optical Transport to the Next Level

Pre-In�nera 2005 2011

10G

100G

500G

Discrete10G

Non-coherent180nm

ASIC130nm, 10 GBaud

FlexCoherent DSP40 nm, 16 GBaud

100G PIC Non-coherent

500G PIC Coherent Super-channels

HD-FECSD-FEC

Transport Bandwidth Step Functions

Exponential Bandwidth Demand

THE INSATIABLE DEMAND for bandwidth continues to drive the

need for network scale. By 2020, over 20 billion devices are ex-

pected to get connected as the Internet of Things (IoT) becomes

pervasive. Mobile video usage is forecast to multiply 13 times over

from today, while 70% of businesses are expected to be cloud-en-

abled by 2020. This exponential growth in bandwidth is compelling

operators to invest in highly scalable network technologies like

wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM), in which multiple optical

carriers travel in parallel over a single fiber pair. However, in spite

of the tremendous capacity of conventional WDM, it also needs to

evolve to new levels of scale, flexibility and reliability to handle this

tremendous onslaught of data traffic.

Transport Bandwidth Step Functions

Super-channels are a recent WDM innovation in which several

optical carriers are combined to create a composite line-side signal

of the desired capacity that can be provisioned in one operational

cycle. Infinera pioneered the use of super-channels in optical trans-

port network platforms in 2005 with the introduction of the world’s

first large-scale photonic integrated circuit (PIC). This PIC trans-

formed the 10 gigabit per second (10G) transport market, which

had historically relied on discrete optical components to build

WDM systems. These discrete optics-based systems consumed

tremendous power and rack space and required more modules and

fibers, resulting in greater operational complexity. The first-genera-

tion PIC introduced a step function in network bandwidth econom-

ics by combining over 60 different functions into a fingernail-sized

pair of chips, while provisioning 100G of capacity in one operation-

al cycle. In addition to photonic functions delivered using the PIC,

transport platforms use electronic functions in the form of digital

signal processors/application-specific integrated circuits (DSP/ASIC)

to process network traffic.

The Infinera DTN platform, designed with the first-generation PIC

and DSP/ASIC, achieved impressive success by capturing 10G

market share leadership a few years after its introduction. In 2009

the second-generation PIC was introduced, dramatically improv-

ing performance to support ultra-long-haul terrestrial and subsea

applications. The next step function in transport performance was

delivered in 2011 with the introduction of the 500G PIC and the

FlexCoherent™ DSP/ASIC as key elements of the Infinera DTN-X

platform. This was the third generation of the PIC technology, with

five 100G channels, effectively delivering a 500G super-channel,

as shown in Figure 1. The FlexCoherent DSP provided coherent

detection technology for the super-channel, tremendously increas-

ing the capacity-reach performance of the DTN-X. Similar to the

Infinera DTN platform, the Infinera DTN-X platform found much

success, capturing 100G market share leadership the first quarter

after it began shipping.

I N F I N E R A I N F I N I T E C A P A C I T Y E N G I N E

Figure 1: Transport Capacity Step Functions

Introducing the Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine

The Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine (Figure 2) is the industry’s

first multi-terabit opto-electronic subsystem, delivering the next

step function in transport networking performance. The Infinera

Infinite Capacity Engine is powered by the advanced electronics in

the next-generation FlexCoherent Processor and the cutting-edge

photonics of Infinera’s fourth-generation PIC. The Infinera Infinite

Capacity Engine is the first in the industry to offer network opera-

tors the combined benefits of delivering optical super-channel ca-

pacity up to 2.4 terabits per second (2.4T) and reach up to 12,000

kilometers (km) in one of the world’s smallest optical subsystems

with very low power consumption.

The Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine is a family of engines, featur-

ing different optical subsystems customized for different network

applications across the Infinera end-to-end Intelligent Transport

Network product portfolio, spanning long-haul terrestrial, subsea,

metro and data center interconnect segments.

Cutting-edge Photonics Infinera PIC technology has clocked nearly

two billion field hours, lighting up over two million kilometers of

fiber. The new PIC technology within the Infinera Infinite Capac-

ity Engine integrates several hundred optical functions, including

tunable lasers, photodiodes, nested Mach-Zehnder modulators,

demodulators, splitters, combiners, attenuators and amplifiers. The

PIC is designed to support multiple parallel channels, is engineered

on the monolithic Indium Phosphide (InP) substrate and supports

the creation of up to 2.4T of capacity along with modulation,

multiplexing and in-chip amplification functions. This implementa-

tion leverages the same fundamental technology as in previous

PIC generations, enabling Infinera to continue to build unique

InP design, manufacturing and testing capabilities to continue to

advance the state of the art. Monolithic InP, a naturally lasing mate-

rial at certain temperatures, continues to be a superior material for

integrating active and passive optical functions for distances longer

than few kilometers while providing multi-terabit-scale performance,

as compared to other co-packaging or hybrid approaches that use

silicon photonics.

Advanced Electronics The next generation of the Infinera FlexCo-

herent Processor DSP delivers sophisticated digital signal handling,

with transmitter-based (Tx) processing and enhanced receiver-

based (Rx) capability, and industry-leading coherent performance.

The solution massively increases spectral efficiency and features

powerful soft-decision forward error correction (SD-FEC) along

with a new set of capabilities in the Infinera Advanced Coherent

Toolkit. Combined with flexible grid technology, it is now possible

to achieve up to 26.4T in the extended C-band of conventional

amplified optical fiber. The FlexCoherent chip provides a range of

modulation formats, including binary phase-shift keying (BPSK),

matrix-enhanced phase-shift keying (ME-PSK), quadrature phase-

shift keying (QPSK), 3QAM, 8QAM (quadrature amplitude modula-

tion) and 16QAM. It improves the net coding gain (NCG) to 11.9

decibels (dB). NCG is defined as the difference of signal to noise

ratio (SNR) requirement at a reference bit error rate (BER) of 10-15,

with or without FEC. NCG helps operators increase capacity-reach

performance in their networks.

The next-generation FlexCoherent chip is fabricated using the

28 nanometer (nm) complementary metal-oxide semiconductor

(CMOS) process and houses over 1.6 billion transistors and 230

million gates while operating at 33 gigabaud (Gbaud). It is fully

designed in-house at Infinera, leveraging the strong coherent engi-

neering and knowledge base in the company.

It’s Bigger

The Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine is the first to deliver multi-

terabit super-channels, with capacity as much as 12 times more

than conventional solutions (Figure 3). It provides up to 2.4T super-


Figure 2: Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine

channels, enabling 26.4T of single fiber capacity. It can power up to

12,000 km, and thus is able to support the longest subsea optical

cables on the planet.

Encryption Security is becoming increasingly important for opera-

tors, with many looking to encrypt network traffic. In-flight network

traffic encryption at the optical transport networking layer, Layer 1,

provides strong protection against snooping or altering, and the

Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine supports this capability at wire rate

with 100% payload throughput at multi-terabit scale, bigger than

current implementations. Infinite Capacity Engine supports ultra-

low latency while encrypting in bulk mode or per service, providing

tremendous flexibility to the network operator. The traffic is en-

crypted using the industry-leading Advanced Encryption Standard

(AES) 256-bit keys, while the keys themselves are exchanged using

the highly efficient 521-bit elliptical curve Diffie-Hellman (ECDH)

mechanism. Infinite Capacity Engine also supports hitless key rota-

tion, a key requirement for many cloud-based service providers.

Internal policies and processes within providers may require key

rotation, or compliance mandates may dictate that keys are rotated

as well.

It’s Smaller

Photonic and electronic integration techniques continue to ad-

vance, resulting in the ability of the Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine

to deliver up to four times more capacity per cubic millimeter than

the previous generation of opto-electronic technology. This is a


Figure 3: Multi-terabit Super-channels

Incr

ease

d R

each

More Capacity

Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine

Up to 2.4T Super-channelUp to 26.4T/fiberBPSK, ME-PSK, QPSK, 3QAM, 8QAM, 16QAMUp to 12,000 km

Infinera500G Super-channelLong-haul

Competition200G/400GMetro

Up to 12x Bigger: Multi-terabit Super-channels

• In-�ight integrated encryption

• Bulk and per service

• Strong AES-256 bit key encryption

• Hitless key rotation

• 521-bit elliptical curve DH key exchange

• Ultra low latency

• 100% payload throughput

• Protocol-agnostic

significant increase in performance within a miniature package that

enables multi-terabit super-channels. It is also extremely power-

efficient, consuming up to 82% less power per gigabit per second

than the nearest competitor (Figure 4).

It’s Better

The Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine provides much better perfor-

mance than comparable industry opto-electronic subsystems. It

enhances the crucial capacity-reach performance factor using ad-

vanced coherent techniques and lowers total cost of ownership with

sliceable photonics and Time-based Instant Bandwidth solutions.

Advanced Coherent Toolkit Infinera’s Advanced Coherent Toolkit

(ACT), comprising comprehensive modulation and compensa-

tion techniques such as Nyquist subcarriers, SD-FEC gain sharing,

ME-PSK, high-gain SD-FEC, and flexible channel spacing, enables

the tuning of parameters for carriers and subcarriers in the super-

channel in order to maximize fiber performance. In a standard

super-channel, multiple coherent optical carriers are implemented

on a single PIC, on which each laser produces a single modulated

carrier. By using the advanced functions of the Infinera Infinite

Capacity Engine, each optical carrier can be further synthesized

into multiple quasi-Nyquist subcarriers that are closely spaced to

each other, dramatically improving tolerance against non-linear

impairments such as cross-phase modulation. The latter is further

mitigated using SD-FEC gain sharing, wherein the FEC output from

two channels can be mathematically combined so that the stronger

channel can be used to enhance the quality factor or Q-value of the

weaker channel. ME-PSK is a new modulation technique for subsea

cables with spans of greater than 9,000 km without regeneration.

ME-PSK provides the same spectral efficiency of BPSK with the

same baud rate and channel spacing. However, it uses a modula-

tion constellation with enhanced coding techniques, resulting in

increased Q-value, translating to increased reach. ACT is enabled

by the Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine and provides up to 60% bet-


Electronics Photonics

Competition Infinera

Electronics

Photonics

Comparable Subsystems for 1.2Tb/s82% lower power per subsystem

Figure 4: Subsystem Scale

Crushes Industry Benchmarks for Subsystems

ter capacity-reach performance in long-haul/subsea applications as

compared to conventional solutions (Figure 5).

Sliceable Photonics The Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine delivers

2.4T of capacity in a single module with a single fiber pair, and is

able to tune and route a 100G wavelength or N x 100G super-

channels in multiple separate directions, and each wavelength

can be fully tuned to its own flexible grid frequency as well as

each wavelength having its own coherent modulation profile. This

reduces requirements for modules in networks by up to 77 percent

while delivering tremendous flexibility, resulting in 53 percent

lower total cost of ownership and a highly flexible optical transport

network. This solution simplifies traffic aggregation while providing

100G economics at multi-terabit scale. It contrasts with competitive

solutions that are being built without PIC technology. Competitive

solutions scale using single wavelength 200G or even 400G tech-

nologies, with typical implementations requiring multiple cards. In

this approach, granularity gets progressively reduced as bandwidth

increases, resulting in more fibers, more power consumption and

more rack space (Figure 6).

Time-based Instant Bandwidth and SDN Control for New Flex-

ible Network Architectures In addition to providing superior opti-

cal capacity and performance in an extremely small package with a

very low power footprint, the Infinite Capacity Engine also enables

a new approach to optical network architectures. The Infinera

Infinite Capacity Engine enables large quantities of pre-deployed,

service-ready bandwidth that can be provisioned via software acti-

vation in 100G increments (slices) with Infinera Instant Bandwidth.

This allows providers to dramatically reduce operational rigidity and


Super-channel carriers37.5 Ghz

35 Ghz

35 Ghz

35/n GHz Subcarriers

Strong Channel

Weak Channel

Both channels now exceed Commissioning Limit

Launch Power

Q F

acto

r

ME-PSKModulation

BPSKModulation

Launch Power

Q V

alue

Nyquist Subcarriers SD-FEC Gain Sharing

ME-PSK

Infinera Advanced Coherent Toolkit (ACT)

Better Distance Capacity Performance: 40–60% in Subsea

Figure 5: Advanced Coherent Toolkit (ACT)

Figure 6: Infinera Sliceable Photonics

Capacityper Line Card

Infinera

Granular Controlper Line

Card

1T

2T

500G

400G

200G

100G

2T 1T 500G 400G 200G 100G

Fewer cards, �berLess power, space

Competition

forecasting complexity; they can closely match their end-customer

revenues by instantly deploying line-side bandwidth and services

using a few mouse clicks and without incurring truck rolls, time and

cost penalties. Infinera recently advanced the Instant Bandwidth

solution with an on-demand time-based capability. Infinera’s Time-

based Instant Bandwidth enables network operators to temporar-

ily activate line-side bandwidth in various increments depending

on the application, with deactivation at the end of a customer-

specified time period. This helps increase network bandwidth for

planned scenarios like sports events, say 200G at node B for two

months (Figure 7), and unplanned scenarios like cable cuts. Infinera

Instant Network amplifies the power of Infinera Instant Bandwidth,

the industry’s first software defined capacity (SDC) solution, and

lays the foundation for cognitive networking. SDC is made possible

by Infinera’s Infinite Capacity Engine and its unique multi-channel

PICs, which enable cost effective pre-deployment of capacity.

Thus the Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine is instrumental in

creating a latent pool of massive network bandwidth that is fully

programmable with software-defined networking (SDN) control.

The Infinera SDN solution provides lightweight open application

programming interfaces (API) for easy and rapid integration into

the operator’s framework including programmatic control of Layer

0, Layer 1 and Layer 2 bandwidth and services. With this solution,

service providers can use the Infinite Capacity Engine-powered

transport layer to deliver innovative new services and optimize the

overall network for lower capital expenditures. The solution also

helps automate operations for lower operational expenditures by

transforming to a DevOps model of agile development, service

creation and deployment.

With Infinera’s Instant Network solution, service providers can use

the Infinite Capacity Engine-powered transport layer to deliver

innovative new services to optimize the overall network for lower

capex and to automate operations for lower operational expendi-

ture by transforming to a DevOps model of agile development and

service creation and deployment.

Infinera Intelligent Transport Networks provide scalability, flexibility

and programmability from subsea to access. As networks enter the

Terabit Era, the Infinera Infinite Capacity Engine delivers a quan-

tum leap in optical transport using cutting-edge photonics and

advanced electronics, aligning with Infinera’s vision of enabling an

infinite pool of intelligent bandwidth that the next communications

infrastructure is built upon.


F

A

B

DE

Multi-terabitSuper-channel

Subsea

100G

C

100G

300G

100G

200G

500G

200G

200G

Plan

Pre-Deploy (up to 2.4T)

Activate Instant Bandwidth (1.5T)

Slice, Route, Modulate

Use Time-Based Instant Bandwidth

SDN

Figure 7: Infinite Flexibility

Infinite Flexibility: Sliceable Photonics, Time-based Instant Bandwidth

© 2017 Infinera Corporation. All rights reserved. Infinera and logos that contain Infinera are trademarks or registered trademarks of Infinera Corporation in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Infinera specifications, offered customer services, and operating features are subject to change without notice. PB-ICE-04-2017

Global Headquarters 140 Caspian Court Sunnyvale, CA 94089 USA Tel: 1 408 572 5200 Fax: 1 408 572 5454 www.infinera.com

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infinera infinite capacity engine - brochure

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