IN Brief:
- Keysight’s new N4378A targets validation of 1.6T and 3.2T optical transmitter and receiver components.
- The platform combines single-sweep measurements to 220 GHz with 1310 nm and 1550 nm wavelength coverage.
- It is positioned for both O-band data centre links and C/L-band terrestrial and submarine applications.
Keysight Technologies has introduced the N4378A Lightwave Component Analyzer, extending calibrated S-parameter measurement for electro-optical and opto-electronic devices to 220 GHz as optical interconnect design moves toward 1.6T and 3.2T class links.
The launch reflects a test problem that has been building alongside AI infrastructure. As data centre interconnects move to higher lane rates and more demanding optical engines, designers need broader-band characterisation of modulators, photodetectors, and receiver and transmitter paths, with enough accuracy to correlate measurement against simulation. Keysight’s answer is a system built around its PNA-X vector network analyser platform and frequency extenders, with single-sweep broadband measurement at 1310 nm and 1550 nm.
The company is also pitching the instrument on versatility rather than headline bandwidth alone. It says the N4378A can cover O-band data centre interconnect work as well as C/L-band terrestrial and submarine applications from the same platform, while differential measurement support is intended to help validate dual-drive modulators. Mechanical details have also been addressed, with a quick-release fixture designed to protect sensitive 0.5 mm coaxial connections during calibration and measurement changes.
Dr Joachim Peerlings, vice president of Network and Data Center Solutions at Keysight, said the analyser would help engineers validate next-generation optical interconnect designs by combining wider optical bandwidth with broad wavelength coverage and a 0.5 mm coaxial ecosystem. Keysight will show the instrument publicly at OFC 2026 in Los Angeles on 17 to 19 March, and product details are available on the N4378A product page.
