The Ethernet Alliance announced the formation of the Small Form Factor Pluggable Module/Electronic Dispersion Compensation (SFP+/EDC) subcommittee, formerly known as the 10GBASE-LRM subcommittee. The mission of the SFP+/EDC subcommittee is to promote 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) by providing information and education on the new SFP+ form factor and associated EDC host ICs and to demonstrate interoperability and technical feasibility of SFP+ through plug-fests and other activities.
SFP+ modules are hot pluggable, small-footprint optical transceivers designed to support 10GbE data communication applications. The 10GbE SFP+ optical transceivers include the short wavelength multimode fiber transceiver (10GBASE-SR), the long wavelength single-mode fiber transceiver (10GBASE-LR) and the long wavelength multimode fiber transceiver (10GBASE-LRM). Direct-attach SFP+ copper cables are also being developed for shorter connections. Emerging SFP+ interfaces offer a low-cost, high-density solution alternative for system providers and customers implementing 10GbE in datacenters and corporate networks.
EDC is a key enabling physical-layer technology for high-speed communications that compensates for optical and electrical signal impairments. The host ICs designed for 10GbE SFP+ incorporate EDC technology compliant with IEEE 802.3 10GbE optical interface specifications to allow flexibility in host board and connector design.