Keysight presents new version of M8040A BERT test solution

Keysight Technologies for telecom operatorsKeysight Technologies has introduced a new version of M8040A bit error ratio tester (BERT) solution with innovations for testing PAM-4 and NRZ devices that operate up to 64 GBaud.

The US-based test and measurement company will be targeting engineers in validation labs and R&D who characterize receivers on the physical layer for 400G data center interconnects. Keysight said its M8040A BERT promises simplified test setups and repeatable and accurate results to engineers.

Keysight Technologies said the retail price of M8040A BERT starts at $323,000 for a 32 GBaud PAM-4 BERT with one channel, including the M8070A software.

The analyzer provides new options for built-in equalization and support of data rates up to 64Gb/s NRZ. Both options are upgradable and available now for ordering.

R&D and validation labs that need to characterize receivers for data center interconnects with PAM-4 or NRZ data rates up to 64 GBaud are facing test related challenges, such as tighter timing margins, channel loss, non-linearity, level interference and crosstalk effects.

A big challenge with higher symbol rates is overcoming channel loss in electrical interfaces, such as chip-to-chip, chip-to-module interfaces and backplanes. Engineers use pre-distortion techniques, such as de-emphasis in the transmitter and equalization in the receiver to help re-open closed eyes caused by inter-symbol interference.

“The M8040A is the most integrated receiver test solution for PAM-4 and NRZ signals,” said Joachim Peerlings, vice president and general manager of Keysight’s Networks and Data Centers Solutions Business.

Engineers and designers can select PAM-4 and NRZ by software in the user interface, eliminating the need for external combiners, cabling and deskew to provide PAM-4 signals. Remote heads reduce the distance to the device under test for best signal quality.

The analyzer module provides PAM-4 error analysis in real-time for long PRBS and QPRBS patterns—allowing proofing even low-bit error ratios and symbol error ratios with the required confidence.

Keysight Technologies said the error analyzer supports symbol rates up to 64 Gbaud for NRZ signals and built-in adjustable equalization. Users can control the M8040A from a graphical and remote-control interface.