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Ciena Corporation CIEN will showcase a range of industry-first coherent optical and intensity modulation direct detection (IMDD) technologies at booth #2443 at the upcoming Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exhibition (OFC 2025), scheduled from March 30 to April 3 in San Francisco. These innovations promise to redefine scalability and flexibility in data center architecture, addressing the rapidly growing demands of cloud and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven infrastructures.
According to a recent global survey conducted by Ciena, data center professionals anticipate a sixfold increase in data center interconnect (DCI) bandwidth requirements over the next five years. In response, Ciena is leveraging its deep expertise to develop advanced interconnect solutions, including next-generation pluggables and optical components designed to support this unprecedented surge in cloud and AI traffic.
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Visitors to Ciena’s booth can expect live demonstrations of pioneering technologies. Among them is the 1.6T Coherent-Lite, powered by Ciena’s 224G SerDes. This technology delivers enhanced robustness and a higher loss budget compared to traditional IMDD solutions, all while maintaining comparable power consumption. It’s specifically engineered to meet the scaling needs of both data center and campus applications.
Ciena is also setting the stage for 3.2T interconnects by being the only player in the industry with a working 448Gb/s PAM4 solution in silicon today. This achievement is driven by Ciena’s state-of-the-art ultra-high-bandwidth DAC (digital-to-analog converter) and ADC (analog-to-digital converter), developed using low-power 3nm CMOS technology. Electrical PAM4 transmission will be demonstrated in the OIF booth (#5745), while Ciena’s booth will host a live showcase of optical PAM4 IMDD transmission.
The company’s legacy of innovation is well-established, having been the first in the industry to deliver several cutting-edge technologies: the first 3nm coherent DSP in communications, the first 200GBaud ADCs and DACs, the first 224G SerDes in a coherent ASIC, the first high-bandwidth 100GHz transmitter and receiver, and now, the first 448Gb/s PAM4 transmission. These milestones underline Ciena's continued leadership in optical networking innovation.
Ciena Rides on AI Boom and Bandwidth Demand
Ciena is witnessing encouraging signs in the market that include improvements in customer spending owing to the rapid proliferation of AI applications. It continues to benefit from higher network traffic and demand for bandwidth, mainly attributed to increasing AI technology use cases. AI growth is fueling global investment in ultra-fast, scalable networks by service and cloud providers. With businesses increasingly relying on cloud computing, AI-driven applications and data-intensive operations, demand for advanced networking infrastructure is likely to drive Ciena’s growth potential in the near term.