The growth of data centers is a constant theme in the trade press.  Typically, this growth is presented as an encouraging trend, creating demand for a variety of systems and components. But for data center managers hyperscale data centers are mostly cost centers; necessary evils that require cost reduction and cost analysis, and do not

After the relative failures of the Thunderbolt 1 and Thunderbolt 2 cabling systems, Thunderbolt 3 appears set for success as the “one cable to rule them all.”  Thunderbolt 3 is billed as a user-friendly cabling system, robust enough to support everything from high-definition video to high-res audio to personal storage networking.  It operates at 40

Be sure to sign up for CIR’s webinar on active optical cabling markets taking place on July 16th.  See here to register. Active optical cable (AOC) suppliers are spreading their wings into video and consumer electronics markets, but most will remain focused on the data center – especially the HPC environment – for years to

There can be little doubt that most of the strategic focus of the AOC manufacturers will continue to be on the data-center market for the next few years. Here they will find a relatively mature market and a fairly clear path for further penetration of the market. Thus we expect to see a growing range

In 1990s fantasies of the all-optical network, electronics played a minimal role. Today it seems that the higher bandwidth demands go the more high-performance silicon is actually needed. In CIR’s new report “400G, OTN AND NEXT-GENERATION TRANSPORT: A MARKET AND TECHNOLOGY FORECAST” (See: http://www.cir-inc.com/reports/400-g-otn-and-next-generation-transport-a-market-and-technology-forecast), we discuss (among other topics) how the first trials of 400G

Carriers worldwide are beginning to outgrow 100G transport networks and are taking the first tentative steps towards 400G backbones. CIR believes these ultra-fast networks will create major new revenue opportunities for optical components firms, silicon chipmakers and equipment companies alike. This new business will occur as 400G transport moves out of today’s trial phase and

This research note is based on CIR’s new report, “Revenue Opportunities for Optical Interconnects: Market and Technology Forecast – 2013 to 2020 Vol II: On-Chip and Chip-to-Chip” Over the next five years chip companies will experience an “interconnect bottleneck” that will cause them to create alternatives to current metal/electrical interconnects. The most likely technology direction

When CIR published a report on the optical interconnect market in 2010, the goal of the report at the time was to provide a full analysis of the entire optical interconnect business. In this year’s CIR analysis we are covering the market in two reports, focusing primarily on interconnects in the chip-to-chip and on-chip sector

This research note is based on CIR’s new report, “Revenue Opportunities for Optical Interconnects: Market and Technology Forecast – 2013-2020. Vol. I Board-to-Board and Rack-Based” CIR’s latest forecast for sales of optical interconnection devices used at the rack level and for board-to-board interconnection remains bullish. We are anticipating revenues doubling from $1.1 million to $2.2

CIR last published a report on the optical interconnect market in 2010. The goal of the report at the time was to provide a full analysis of the optical interconnect business, which was taken to include: • Optical cable assemblies inside equipment as well as between equipment, or defined as board-to-board and rack-to-rack, respectively; •

Active optical cabling (AOC) is a black-box solution to creating a fiber-optic connection and consists of a complete fiber-optic data link (transceivers plus cable) that can be plugged into existing ports, enabling a very rapid introduction of optical connections. AOCs provide customers with access to all the undisputed advantages of fiber (high bandwidth, relatively thin,