OREANDA-NEWS. March 16, 2016. Fujitsu Optical Components Limited and Fujitsu Limited announced today that in the 48th Ichimura Prizes in Industry(1), promoted by the New Technology Development Foundation, they have been awarded The Ichimura Prize in Industry for Distinguished Achievement for their "Development and Commercialization of High Speed 100Gbps Modules for Optical Communications."

The expansion of on-line streaming and mobile services has rapidly increased the volume of communications traffic worldwide, causing demand for the commercialization of next-generation large-capacity 100Gbps optical networks to gain significant momentum. In response, by developing new technologies, the two companies were able to successfully and rapidly commercialize high-speed transmitting and receiving devices and high-speed transceivers equipped with the transmitting and receiving devices with the world's highest level of performance. These products significantly contributed to the worldwide development of digital society.

Award Recipients and Technology Being Recognized

Recipients of The Ichimura Prize in Industry for Distinguished Achievement

These prizes are presented to researchers or groups who make a significant contribution to industry by developing exceptional industrial technology in Japan. The awards ceremony will be held on Monday, April 25, 2016, at the Imperial Hotel Tokyo.

Hiroyuki Furukawa (Deputy Director, Production Engineering Dept., Manufacturing Div., Fujitsu Optical Components Limited)
Masaki Iwamoto (Production Engineering Dept., Manufacturing Div., Fujitsu Optical Components Limited)
Michinao Nomura (Director, Process Engineering Dept., Production System Technology Div., Corporate Product Technology & MONOZUKURI Development Unit, Fujitsu Limited)

Project: Development and Commercialization of High Speed 100Gbps Modules for Optical Communications

Prize Winning Technology

The two companies developed the below technologies, and successfully commercialized devices which have become key components in achieving 100Gbps optical networks. These include a receiving device (coherent receiver), a transmitting device (optical modulator) that supports the 100G digital coherent method, and the coherent optical transceiver equipped with the transmitting and receiving devices.

  1. Direct mounting technology for optical elements:

    Directly mounting optical elements to the Planer Lightwave Circuit (PLC) and electrically coupling them with the shortest wire-bonding to simultaneously achieve high-speed performance and mass production.

  2. Automatic assembly technology:

    The companies developed highly reliable image recognition technology with machine learning(2) and efficient prediction alignment technology, enabling highly precise and high-speed assembly.

By supplying system providers worldwide with these modules for optical communications, the two companies supported the spread of 100Gbps optical network markets and had a major impact on the development of digital society.

Currently, the companies are developing 100+ Gbps optical communications modules to support increased communications traffic. Winning the Contribution Prize has reinforced the companies' determination to advance the development of these modules for the further evolution of digital society.