Development Progress Toward an RJ45 Based Backward Compatible Connectivity Solution for 40GBASE-T

摘要

The IEEE 802.3 NGBASE-T Study Group formally began the project of developing a 40GBASE-T application over balanced twisted pair copper cabling in March 2013. Analysis by experts in IEEE estimate that the bandwidth and some transmission parameters such as insertion loss, return loss, and alien crosstalk in existing balanced cabling standards would need to be extended or improved to accommodate the new application. TIA and ISO working groups are developing category 8 (Cat 8) transmission standards that are specified up to 2 GHz in anticipation of the 40GBASE-T application requirements. Paralleling the efforts in standards development, cabling vendors have been pursuing design improvements to achieve anticipated transmission requirements. This paper considers many of the connector and cable transmission design challenges and highlights some of the progress made to address the impairments while ensuring that Cat 8 components maintain backward compatibility with existing equipment through the continued use of the ubiquitous RJ45 connection. Data demonstrating some of the latest advances will be presented.