Optical Module (SFP, SFP+, QSFP, CFP, etc)
There are many types of optical modules. You need to know the naming rules of optical modules to understand the meanings of various symbols on optical modules. The optical module is composed of an optoelectronic device, a functional circuit and an optical interface, and realizes a photoelectric conversion function. There are many types of optical modules, and the optical modules shipped by the company are composed of a series of symbols. If you don't have a systematic study of optical modules, it is difficult to grasp the meaning of these symbols. Based on my own knowledge, the author makes a simple summary of the basic knowledge of optical modules from the following aspects.
First, the naming rules of the optical module
Each optical module manufacturer has its own unique optical module naming system. The author compares the new product naming rules of several optical module manufacturers and finds that the names of optical modules in the industry are similar. Understand the optical module naming rules to understand all the information contained in the manufacturer's optical module product name. Figure 1 decomposes the naming rules of an optical module product. The names of other optical module manufacturers generally include the following information or part of the information.
Second, the main types of optical modules
With the ever-increasing demand for data traffic and bandwidth, optical module replacement is fast. Optical module types include 1×9, SFF, SFP, GBIC, XENPAK, XFP, SFP+, and optical modules above 10G. The mainstream of the market has grown to above the gigabit rate, and the demand for optical modules of 10G and above has gradually increased.
GBIC package - hot-swappable Gigabit interface optical module with SC interface. GBIC is an abbreviation of Gigabit Interface Converter, which is an interface device for converting gigabit electrical signals into optical signals. The GBIC can be designed for hot swapping. GBIC is an interchangeable product that meets international standards. Gigabit switches designed with GBIC interface have a large market share in the market due to flexible interchangeability.
SFP package-hot-swap small package module, the current maximum rate is up to 4G, and more LC interface. SFP is an abbreviation of SMALL FORMPLUGGABLE, which can be simply understood as an upgraded version of GBIC. The SFP module is half the size of the GBIC module and can be configured with more than double the number of ports on the same panel. The other functions of the SFP module are basically the same as the GBIC. Some switch manufacturers call the SFP module a miniaturized GBIC (MINI-GBIC).
The 10G module has undergone development from 300Pin, XENPAK, X2, XFP, and finally achieved the same size as SFP, which is SFP+. The differences between SFP+ and XFP are as follows:
1. SFP+ and XFP are both 10G fiber modules and can communicate with other types of 10G modules;
2, SFP+ is smaller than the XFP appearance size;
3. Because of the smaller SFP+ signal modulation function, serial/deserializer, MAC, clock and data recovery (CDR),
And electronic dispersion compensation (EDC) function is moved from the module to the motherboard card;
4. XFP compliant protocol: XFP MSA protocol;
5. SFP+ compliant protocols: IEEE 802.3ae, SFF‐8431, SFF‐8432;
6, SFP+ is a more mainstream design.
7. SFP+ protocol specification: IEEE 802.3ae, SFF‐8431, SFF‐8432.
CFP and QSFP are two implementations of optical modules of 40G and above. CFP series optical modules are CFP, CFP2, and CFP4, of which CFP2 and CFP4 are two product solutions of 100G optical modules. The QSFP is a four-channel SFP interface, and the QSFP series has QSFP, QSFP+, and QSFP28. QSFP and QSFP+ mainly implement 40G optical interfaces, and QSFP28 optical modules support 100G interfaces.
Third, the main types of fiber interfaces
A fiber interface is a physical interface used to connect fiber-optic cables. It usually has several types, such as SC, LC, FC, and ST. The optical interfaces of different optical modules are different. 1×9 and GBIC optical modules usually use SC fiber interfaces, while optical modules in SFP and XFP packages usually use LC fiber interfaces.
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