Anritsu Company introduces Forward Error Correction (FEC) symbol capture and Bathtub test functionality for its 116-Gbit/s PAM4 Error Detector (ED) MU196040B in its Signal Quality Analyzer-R MP1900A BERTs. With the latest application software installed, the MP1900A conducts highly accurate bit error rate (BER) evaluations of 400 GbE and 800 GbE communications equipment and devices used in data centers servicing 5G networks.

Anritsu developed each software package to support the growing demand for 400 GbE/800 GbE network elements. Both solutions support quantitative measurement of PAM4 Signal Integrity, such as jitter tolerance tests, to evaluate the performance of high-speed devices and transceivers.

The FEC symbol capture function software allows the MP1900A to evaluate FEC-based network elements. The MP1900A ED functions analyze errors to evaluate if they can be corrected by FEC. It only captures data streams when the burst errors exceed the FEC uncorrectable threshold. From the captured data, a user can determine, and troubleshoot the type of data steam that caused the uncorrectable burst errors.

Anritsu also added the PAM4 Bathtub test software so engineers can use the MP1900A to evaluate and quantify jitter phase margin. This testing capability is critical, as jitter becomes more severe as the data-stream baud rate increases to achieve the higher traffic capacity associated with 400 GbE/800 GbE transmissions.

MP1900A Overview

The modular MP1900A BERT running embedded Windows 10 is easily expandable to meet evolving test requirements. As well as supporting 400 GbE and 800 GbE PAM4, it is a market-leading bit error rate tester (BERT) for various high-speed interfaces, including PCI Express® 5.0 and USB4™, using a full line of modules and application software. In addition to more accurate BER measurements, the MP1900A helps shorten development times for high-speed devices and transceivers.