Gennum Announces Industry's Most Integrated Solution for Telecom and Datacom Optical Module Applications

Gennum CDRs with Integrated Laser Driver Offers Power, Cost and Space Savings

BURLINGTON, ON, March 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Gennum Corporation (TSX:GND) today announced the industry's most integrated CDRs (clock and data recovery) for telecom and datacom optical module applications. The GN2012 and GN2010, with integrated laser driver, offer customers a low power, small footprint and cost effective solution for 8Gbps 10Gbps optical modules.

Gennum's newest CDR family includes three variants, the GN2012, GN2010D and GN2010E. The GN2010D and GN2010E are an industry first in integration, combining a dual 10G CDR with a limiting amplifier and a laser driver. The GN2010D includes a DML driver and the GN2010E includes an EML driver. The GN2012 is a dual 10G CDR with limiting amplifier. All three variants provide retime support for 8G Fibre Channel allowing a single device to support Fibre Channel, 10Gb Ethernet and OC-192 SONET. The GN2010 family also integrates the APC loop, reducing the need for external components. This highly integrated solution offers performance, power and cost benefits for XFP and SFP+ modules. The GN2010D and GN2010E are pin compatible, and support a platform-based approach in customers' next generation designs.

The high level of integration in Gennum's new CDRs supports a new class of retimed SFP+ modules. The devices enable a sub 1W CDR based 10GbE SFP+ module and a SONET compliant SFP+ module, increasing the level of density possible in telecom systems. The improved performance of a CDR based SFP+ module can be important in high density systems that use stacked SFP+ connectors, as these connectors can degrade the link performance. A CDR-based SFP+ module also supports the architecture chosen for the next Fibre Channel standard, 16G Fibre Channel, for next generation storage area networks. Designed for SFP+ applications, Gennum's low power CDR with laser driver devices use a 3.3V supply and do not require a reference clock.

For DWDM applications, a transition is required from the 300-pin module form factor to XFP to increase density and reduce power. The integration of a CDR with EML driver in the GN2010E saves power and reduces the overall footprint of the solution, making it ideal for XFP DWDM modules. The GN2010E also integrates key features to optimize dispersion penalty and OSNR performance.

"The GN2010D and GN2010E CDRs offer customers the most integrated features available in the market today. With an integrated laser driver, and receive and transmit retiming, these CDRs offer manufacturers of XFP and SFP+ modules pin compatible solutions that lower power, reduce overall component cost and board footprint," said Vijay Sharma, Marketing Director, Gennum Corporation.

"Gennum's newest CDR products are the most integrated offering available in the market today. Our industry-leading CDRs were designed to enable next generation, high performance telecom and datacom applications. Our design teams continue to push the limits of innovation to deliver the best possible optical IC solutions to our customers," said Martin Rofheart, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Analog Mixed Signal Group at Gennum.

About Gennum Corporation

Gennum Corporation (TSX: GND) designs innovative semiconductor solutions and intellectual property (IP) cores for the world's most advanced consumer connectivity, enterprise, video broadcast and data communications products. Leveraging the company's proven optical, analog and mixed-signal products and IP, Gennum enables multimedia and data communications products to send and receive information without compromising the signal integrity. Recognized as an award winner for advances in high definition (HD) broadcasting, Gennum is headquartered in Burlington, Canada, and has global design, research and development and sales offices in Canada, Mexico, Japan, Germany, United States, Taiwan, India and the United Kingdom. www.gennum.com.

SOURCE Gennum Corporation