400G DR4 optical transceiver serve as a high speed connect and provide stable connectivity for 400G InfiniBand networks. Following article delves into the technical advantages and connectivity solution of 400G DR4 transceivers, as well as how to select the appropriate 400G DR4 optical transceiver form factor to meet your specific networking needs.
The 400G DR4 optical transceiver is a high density, hot pluggable optical transceiver designed for 400 Gbps data transmission over singlemode fiber (SMF) up to 500 meters, ideal for data center interconnects. It uses 4-channel parallel technology, with each channel operating at 100 Gbps (PAM4), often in QSFP-DD or OSFP form. DR4 refers to 500m each using OS2 singlemode fiber, and “4” implies there are 4 optical channels. Each optical channel operates at 100Gb/s. The DR4 optical transceiver use the widely deployed 12Cores MPO/APC connector to connect to 4 fiber pairs. Although an 12Cores MPO/APC cable can have up to 12 fibers, only 8 out of the 12 fibers are used for the 400G DR4 transceivers (4 for Tx and 4 for Rx).
As a perfessional optical transceiver supplier, UnitekFiber offers 400G InfiniBand DR4 optical transceiver in two different form factors to support a wide range of networking needs. One is 400G OSFP DR4, the other is 400G QSFP112 DR4.
Each optical transceiver undergoes strict testing procedures, including spectrum analysis, eye diagram testing, Bit Error Rate (BER) testing, and temperature testing. This ensures stable and reliable performance under various operating environments and conditions.
400G OSFP DR4 Flat Top optical transceiver and 400G OSFP112 DR4 optical transceiver enable seamless connectivity between 800G switches and combinations of 400G ConnectX-7 or BlueField-3 DPUs. By utilizing 2x12cores MPO/APC cables, these optical transceiver establish high performance links to the 800G OSFP DR8, streamlining the transition from 400G to 800G networks.
The 400G QSFP112 DR4 optical transceiver supports downshifting to 200G speeds, enabling flexible connectivity between the 800G OSFP DR8 optical transceiver and up to four ConnectX-7 adapters (and/or DPUs) via two MPO/MTP coversion cables. This configuration optimizes resource usage and offers a scalable solution for upgrading your network infrastructure.
The 400G DR4 optical transceiver uses PAM4 modulation technology. Its internal chips convert 4*100G electrical channels into 4*100G optical channels for signal transmission. By encoding two bits of data in each symbol, the PAM4 modulation method effectively doubles the data transfer rate, improving bandwidth efficiency and fully unlocking the module’s performance.
These advantages make 400G DR4 transceivers essential for scenarios that demand low latency and high bandwidth, such as cloud computing, artificial intelligence, big data analytic, and telecommunications. The internal transmission structure of the 400G DR4 transceivers is illustrated below.
1310nm wavelength of 400G DR4 optical transceiver is extremely important in optical communication, especially for short to medium distance data transmission. It stands out mainly due to its excellent performance, compared with the 1550nm wavelength, it causes less signal distortion (chromatic dispersion) and lower power loss (attenuation).
400G DR4 optical transceiver’s 1310nm wavelength is optimized for transmission distances of up to 500 meters, making it perfect for applications from metropolitan area networks (MAN) to medium range, high density connectivity. It strikes a good balance between performance and cost, while efficiently meeting the data transmission requirements of modern networks.
When deciding between 400G OSFP DR4 and 400G QSFP112 DR4 optical transceiver, you can take the following key factors into consideration:
Both OSFP and QSFP112 of our 400G DR4 InfiniBand optical transceiver have undergone official compatibility testing to ensure full support for NVIDIA ConnectX-7 adapters. Before purchasing, it is important to confirm the port type on your device, as OSFP and QSFP112 are physically different form factors. An OSFP based system must use OSFP optical transceiver and cables accordingly.
400G OSFP DR4 flat top optical transceiver is designed only for ConnectX-7 network, unlike the finned top OSFP module used for switches. Since the latest high speed 800G NDR and 1.6T XDR switches adopt the OSFP form factor, choosing OSFP modules can make future network upgrades easier.
In comparison, the QSFP112 DR4 optical transceiver works with both ConnectX-7 and BlueField 3 DPUs. It also supports rate reduction to 200G, allowing a smooth migration from 200G networks to 800G NDR networks. Your final choice should depend on your actual application scenarios and network upgrade plans.
InfiniBand networking has become a leading trend, and deploying 400G DR4 optical transceivers is the optimal solution for building your high performance network. UnitekFiber provides a full lineup of fiber optical transceivers for InfiniBand network. Please feel free to contact us at sales@unitekfiber.com if you have any requirements or inquiries.
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