Marvell Technology, a pioneering name in data infrastructure semiconductor solutions, has introduced Orion, an innovative 800 Gbps coherent digital signal processor (DSP) designed for pluggable modules.
Orion is set to revolutionize the economics and performance of transport networks connecting carrier and cloud assets across extended geographic regions.
Orion stands out by offering double the maximum bandwidth of current leading solutions while still adhering to the strict thermal and electrical limits of pluggable modules. This breakthrough technology empowers carriers and cloud service providers to transition from traditional optical transport networking transmission equipment to more streamlined and scalable architectures. These architectures can be built around merchant routers, integrated optical modules, and other advanced technologies, ultimately leading to a lower total cost of ownership.
The adoption of Orion-based pluggable modules is projected to yield remarkable cost savings. Expected to deliver up to 75 percent in Capex and Opex savings compared to traditional transport equipment for popular carrier use cases like metro networks, Orion-based modules are also anticipated to offer 30 percent lower cost and power per bit compared to existing pluggable modules.
Orion covers a wide spectrum of transport lengths and bandwidth capacities, catering to diverse use cases including:
Metro Network Connections (~500km): Delivering 800 Gbps per wavelength, offering double the bandwidth of current pluggable modules.
600 Gbps Regional Network Connections (~1,200km): Suitable for core networks utilizing integrated optical modules and IP over DWDM (IPoDWDM) routers, reducing infrastructure complexity and costs.
400 Gbps Long-Haul Connections (up to ~2,000km): Applicable for both traditional and IPoDWDM networks.
800 Gbps (~500km) and 600 Gbps (~1,200km) ZR/ZR+ Data Center Interconnects: Scales network capacity efficiently to handle surging traffic from data-intensive workloads like AI.
Achyut Shah, Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Connectivity Business Group at Marvell, highlighted the transformative potential of Orion: “Orion represents a tipping point for optical transport technology. With Orion, pluggable modules will be able to be deployed across these complex, high-performance networks while delivering substantial reductions in cost and power.”
Produced using 5nm technology, Orion is Marvell’s fifth-generation coherent DSP, succeeding Deneb and Canopus, the company’s acclaimed 400 Gbps coherent DSPs. Orion is the industry’s first coherent DSP supporting standards-based pluggable form factors at symbol rates exceeding 130+ GBaud. This allows Orion-based modules to transfer data at higher rates over longer distances compared to current modules. It also features Marvell’s 112 Gbps SerDes, developed as part of Marvell’s 5nm technology platform.
Orion adheres to industry standards and can be used in various form factors, including QSFP-DD, OSFP, and CFP2. This adaptability positions Orion as an ideal DSP solution to facilitate the widespread adoption of coherent pluggable-enabled architectures.
With Orion’s introduction, Marvell has taken a significant stride towards redefining the capabilities and economics of transport networks. The technology’s potential for substantial savings and enhanced performance is poised to drive widespread adoption across the industry.
