DAC/AOC/AEC/ACC Cable

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Key words：DAC, AOC, AEC, ACC 

DAC Cable:

DAC, also known as a direct connection cable, consists of a copper cable

DAC does not include photoelectric conversion module, low cost. In data centers, DAC copper cables are typically used to connect servers and storage area networks. DAC copper cables have become the best solution for short distance transmission. The main application scenarios focus on interconnections in the 5 m /10 m range.

AOC cable:

AOC is an active optical cable. The AOC consists of two modules on both ends, with a section of fiber optic connection in the middle. The optical module and the optical cable are integrated, and the optical modules at both ends require laser components;

AOC eliminates the possibility of optical port contamination and improves reliability. Costs are reduced by reducing the number of optical components and eliminating DDM (digital diagnostic monitoring) functions.

Advantages of AOC: High transmission rate, long distance, low power consumption, light weight and easy to use, free from electromagnetic interference. These benefits are achieved through the adoption of optical transmission, which overcomes the distance limitations of DAC copper cables

AOC active cables are ideal for IDC data centers, HPC high performance computing, and InfiniBand switch interconnects.

AEC And ACC Cable

With the increase of data center speed and bandwidth, the transmission distance of DAC is limited. During the transition from 400G to 800G, the DAC transmission distance is shortened from 3 meters to 2 meters. To overcome the problems of transmission distance as well as power consumption and transmission performance, AEC and ACC active cables were introduced

Active Electrical Cable

AEC active cables utilize the Retimer chip architecture, which not only amplifies and equalizes the Tx and Rx terminals, but also reshapes the signal at the Rx terminals.

AEC active cable supports transmission rates of 100G, 200G, 400G, 800G, package types including QSFP56, QSFP112, OSFP, QSFP-DD, currently the longest transmission distance of up to 10 meters, it has forward error correction (FEC) function and cable retiming function. Ensures a fully balanced signal with an extremely low bit error rate. The transmission distance of passive copper DAC is limited to the condition of single channel 25G NRZ rate, which can only provide a maximum coverage of 5 meters; AEC active cable has the advantage of low power consumption and low cost; Smaller volume than DAC; AEC active cable is mainly used for ToR and server connection; In terms of usability, AEC and AOC are relatively similar, they both have built-in active chips, relatively intelligent, so the use method is close. DAC is just a copper wire, can not be compared; AEC and AOC can do signal processing to achieve complete signal reception, so they are not sensitive to external conditions; DAC has no signal processing capability. By the 800G era, the power consumption of AEC will only be 1/3 of that of single-mode optical modules;

Active Copper Cable

The AACC active copper wire utilizes the Redriver chip architecture and uses CTLE equalization to adjust the gain on the Rx end, thus extending the transmission distance to several meters. Compared with active optical cable AOC and optical module, ACC active copper cable has the advantages of low cost, low power consumption, small temperature change, and transparent protocol, which can meet the energy saving and cost control needs of large data centers.

DAC/ACC/AEC has more cost advantages than AOC because it does not require photoelectric conversion. ACC and AEC solutions extend the applicable distance of copper cable connectors; AEC scheme has higher bandwidth than ACC scheme, uses retimer chip structure, and has a function of signal shaping at the receiving end. Because of the signal amplifier, the transmission distance of active ACC and AEC is longer than that of passive DAC. ACC uses the Redriver chip architecture to adjust the gain at the Rx end through CTLE equalization, which is more like an active cable that amplifies analog signals; AEC uses the retimer chip architecture, which can not only amplify and equalize the Tx and Rx terminals, but also re-shape the signals of the Rx terminals

Fiberwdm is a high-tech enterprise integrating R&D, production, sales and service. As a leading optical device and optical network equipment provider, the company can provide 800G/400G/200G/100G high-speed optical modules, DAC, AOC, ACC, AEC, DCI interconnection products, MPO cables, etc., to meet the needs of data center, AI computing power, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, edge computing and other big data transmission interconnection needs