Agilent Technologies Adds Bit Error Ratio Analysis Capabilities to Optical Modulation Analyzer

The analysis of the BER of a transmitter or link is the ultimate parameter in digital transmission to measure the transmission quality for 40/100G systems. Test instruments currently used for on-off-keying modulation cannot be used to measure the BER of advanced modulation formats because they do not have the appropriate receiver to detect this kind of signal.

Agilent's optical modulation analyzer has the necessary receiver integrated to count the errors and calculate the BER from its detected data in real time or in large sample number capture modus. The test signal can be either a Pseudo Random Bit Sequence (PRBS) or user-defined pattern.

Measuring only the electrical BER from transmitter input to receiver output of an optical link leaves the uncertainty of which of the three components -- the transmitter, the link itself or the receiver -- caused the BER problem during a test failure.

Being able to measure the BER of a physical layer signal allows transmitter and system designers and quality engineers to clearly distinguish which part of the transmission system caused the problem.

Our optical modulation analyzer provides a highly flexible turn-key test solution for development and characterization of 40G/100G transmission systems based on advanced modulation schemes, said Juergen Beck, general manager of Agilent's Digital Photonic Test business. The addition of BER test functionality addresses further needs of scientists, development engineers and quality engineers of transmission system and component suppliers, and closes another gap in optical modulation test.