Near-Packaged Optics (NPO) is concept that has emerged recently embodying many of the advantages of Co-packaged optics (CPO) but simpler to implement. We think that given that CPO technology is still at its earliest stages, we need a ramp up technology to get us to CPO. NPO uses a high-performance PCB substrate—an interposer—that sits on …
Pluggable optical modules in the way we have known them are on their way out. Co-packaged Optics is garnering a great deal of attention and while it will largely displace/replace existing concept of pluggables, this won’t happen overnight. This article provides some perspective on the transition away from pluggable optics. Currently the pluggable market remains …
The Rise of Co-Packaged Optics and the (Gradual) Decline of Pluggables Read More »
While early 2021 was more dramatic in terms of new co-packaged optics (CPO) products, the past year proved to be the period in which CPO took its first baby steps towards the data communications mainstream. Two important practical developments occurred. One, which we discuss in this article, is the OIF Co-Packaged Optics Framework. The other …
5 Reasons Why the OIF Co-Packaged Optics Framework is Significant Read More »
Evolution of CPO in 2021 and Early 2022 Co-packaged optics (CPO) has emerged as technology of considerable interest as a platform for deploying optics in large data centers. A considerable segment of data communications sees CPO as a practical way forward to deploy 800G and above interfaces. It is recognized by just about everybody in …
The Need for CPO in the Latency-sensitive Data Center Read More »
The demand for co-packaged optics (CPO) will be driven by many factors. Today, latency-sensitive traffic such as AI and ML is getting a lot of attention. However, this is mostly because AI and ML is new and exciting, while video is old hat. Nonetheless, CIR believes that the video revolution is far from over and …
Co-packaged Optics standards activity have moved CPO from the realm of discussion closer to real-world adoption: (1) COBO has established a CPO working group. (2) CPO specifications have materialized in the form of the CPO Collaboration Joint Development Forum’s CPO Module product requirements document (PRD). And (3) there is an implementation agreement (IA) from the …
One of main predictions of CIR’s 2020 report on co-packaged optics (CPO) is that next-generation switching chips is just the beginning for CPO. We took the position that CPO is essentially a new way to opto-electronic integration and that novel switching technology is just a place to start. With $15 million in recent funding, POET …
POET Takes Co-Packaging Beyond Communications Markets Read More »
In the past few months two important announcements have been made showing different ways forward for the Co-Packaged Optics (CPO) business. One of these announcements came from a duo of Cisco and Inphi. It shows perhaps a certain amount of caution about CPO. For various reasons, Broadcom is a tad more optimistic. However, announcements from …
Broadcom, Cisco, Inphi and the Timing for Co-Packaged Optics: A CIR Research Note Read More »
Co-packaged optics (CPO) is flavor of the month right now; the question is, what kind of CPO? There will surely be different form factors for data centers and telecommunications, and interconnects, sensors, and supercomputing. But there will also be different form factors proposed for CPO for within the data center. Based on recent presentations by …
Co-Packaged Optics: Of Form Factors and Future Fights Read More »
The Co-Packaging Framework IA (Implementers Agreement) effort just announced by the OIF is a strong endorsement for co-packaging; a technology platform whose star is in the ascendant. Co-packaging was – as recently as two years ago — considered a futuristic platform, but much attention has been brought to it as the hyperscale data center managers …