42 I ICT TODAY
WHICH MPO FOR HIGH SPEED
MPO-24 MPO-12 MPO-8
Future ready
Lowest cost duplex support for
multimode applications
Highest panel density
Existing multimode and
singlemode preterm deployments
Familiar interface and trunks
SFP
SFP
SFP
SFP
SFP
FIGURE 4: Shows 8-fiber duplex solutions.
Supports QSFPs
For multimode and singlemode
transceivers and breakouts
Lowest panel density
SFP
SFP
SFP
SFP
SFP
LC-LC Patch Cord LC-LC Patch Cord
8f QP-LC Array
8f QP-LC Array
8f QX-QX Trunk
LC-LC Patch Cord 8f QX-QX Trunk
LC-LC Patch Cord
8f QP-LC Array
8f QP-LC Array
8f QX-QX Trunk
8f QP-LC Array
8f QP-LC Array
MPOs would require six
MPOs and take up three ports
inside each fiber shelf.
MPO-24 trunk
implementations provide
significant advantages
for duplex and parallel
implementations, providing
for faster installation and
better pathway efficiency.
In the case of parallel
applications, MPO-24 also
provides the highest panel
density when breakout
assemblies are used. Also,
MPO-24 is always a multiple
of “8s” and “12s” (i.e., 24,
48, 72), but MPO-8s are not
always multiples of “12” or
“24” (i.e., 8, 16, 32, 40, 56).
DUPLEX, PARALLEL OR BOTH?
Data centers going forward will
likely be a mix of duplex and parallel
systems. Duplex transmission has
a single-lane, or serial architecture,
that can support data rates of 10 to
40 Gb/s. In a duplex system, one fiber
is used to transmit and the other to
receive data.
Parallel transmission utilizes
multiple lanes (fibers) that can
support 40 Gb/s rates and beyond.
This means that parallel architectures
require multiple fibers to transmit and
receive data.
For comparison, Figures 4 and
5 show different ways of deploying
these architectures based on eight
fiber duplex and parallel solutions
respectively. There are a lot of
different options available today when
deploying these higher speeds, which
is why ICT designers and installers
FIGURE 3: Shows the different MPO options and application benefits.
8f QP-QP Patch Cord
QSFP
8f 8f QX-QX Trunk
8f QX-QX Trunk
FIGURE 5: Shows 8-fiber parallel solutions.
SFP
SFP
SFP
8f QP-QP Patch Cord
8f QP-QP Patch Cord
LC-LC Patch Cord
8f QP-LC Array
8f QX-LC Array
8f QP-QP Patch Cord 8f QX-QX Trunk
8f QP-QP Patch Cord
QSFP
QSFP
QSFP
QSFP QSFP
8f Duplex