Technology Transfer of Photonic Waveguide Characterisation

Electronic traffic is projected to double every two years with increases from electronics, telecommunications and automotive industries and improving the efficiency of data transfer is needed to support future industrial growth. To optimise network carrying capacity data centres increasingly use short-range optical links such as pluggable Electro Optical Circuit Boards (EOCBs). These connect centres to external networks with a 10-fold improvement in data transfer rate over traditional cabling, enhancing network carrying capacity. International standard IEC 62496 covers design specifications for EOCBs but lacks measurement parameters that could increase board efficiency and does not cover real-world operational temperatures, known to affect performance.

This project has disseminated the outputs of the previous EMPIR project PhotoInd, that detailed EOCB behaviour at operational temperatures up to 80^oC, along with measurements enabling improved board efficiency. At the end of the project in 2021 by promoting the inclusion of these results into international standards the project has allowed the telecommunications industry to ensure EOCBs are designed and manufactured to meet real-life conditions, helping data centres maximise bandwidth efficiency and minimise data loss.