Press Release
For Immediate Release

Molex Announces QSFP High-Performance Products

LISLE, Ill. – January 9, 2007 –Molex Inc. announces a Quad Small Form-factor Pluggable (QSFP) product offering as a part of a highly-integrated system that is compatible with the QSFP Multi Source Agreement (MSA) and combines optimal real estate, power and port density. This product offering integrates four 10G high speed channels into a single pluggable interconnect system, resulting in three times the port density of SFP and lower cost per channel. QSFP is the next-generation hot-pluggable interface for high performance switches, routers, servers and host bus adapters for computing and telecommunication applications.

QSFP is currently the world’s most compact, 4-high speed channel, Z-axis pluggable interface. The Molex QSFP Interconnect System supports speeds to 10 Gbps per lane, and with an optional serial management interface, the Molex copper QSFP cable assembly delivers the same performance as an optical solution at less cost. The offering includes the SMT host connector, an EMI shielding cage assembly, passive and active cable assemblies.

“Molex is the first to offer a 40 Gbps Copper QSFP Interconnect System,” said Jay Neer, strategic product manager, Molex Inc. “The Molex system is designed to minimize our customer’s design efforts surrounding cable management, signal integrity of the host connector module interface, and EMI.”

SMT Host Connector

Using the same iPass™ connector as the x4 PCIe, the QSFP 38-circuit SMT Host Connector provides the density and headroom required to support 4 high-speed channels up to 10 Gbps each. With a pitch of 0.80mm (.031”), the SMT host connector is designed for placement under an EMI cage that accepts both pluggable optical modules and copper cables. The SMT host connector allows the circuit designer the option to place the connector on either side of the PCB. Additional benefits include alignment posts to provide stability when placing the connector and standoffs to facilitate PCB cleaning.

EMI Cage Assembly

The Molex QSFP EMI Cage is offered as a one-piece, press-fit configuration that is designed for easy assembly and accepts either optical modules, or copper cables. The single host connector and cage combination supports a belly-to-belly configuration. The Molex EMI cage bezel interface is available with either EMI spring fingers or a compression gasket. Additionally, heat sinks and light pipes are also options.

Passive and Active Copper Cable Assemblies

Molex provides the total copper solution by offering both passive and active copper cable assemblies at data rates up to 40 Gbps. Within rack applications, the Molex passive cable assemblies are the lowest per port cost in the market today. Up to 20 meter active cables enable longer-reach rack-to-rack connections. Additionally, the Molex QSFP cable assemblies’ feature zinc die-cast backshells to provide enhanced EMI shielding. They also support Ethernet, Fibre Channel, InfiniBand* and SONET/SDH.

“The QSFP specification provides the industry’s highest bandwidth density in a standardized pluggable interface,” said Scott Kipp, chairman of the QSFP MSA. “By providing the QSFP product offering that works at 10 Gbps per channel or 40 Gbps aggregate, Molex demonstrates their leadership in providing a solution that meets the industry’s need for speed.”

Molex is an active member of the QSFP MSA group creating the new QSFP MSA transceiver to support Ethernet, Fibre Channel and SONET/SDH. These products are currently available for sampling.

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