Vitesse Semiconductor introduced a smaller, six-port version of its Serval Carrier Ethernet switch engine optimized for 4G/LTE small cells and indoor femtocells.
Serval Lite integrates Vitesse’s IEEE1588v2 VeriTime technology, which the company says has already been adopted by customers comprising 60% market share in microwave backhaul and 75% market share in millimeter-wave backhaul.
Serval Lite delivers Carrier Ethernet features needed to support advanced packet-based services in a compact, low power package. The power usage is less than 1.5W, enabling small form factors and the possibility of Power-over-Ethernet for wireless backhaul radios.
The new device brings greater power efficiency and lower costs for microwave and millimeter wave backhaul radios that are coming to market to support 4G/LTE small deployments in dense urban areas.
Vitesse said it also sees a market opportunity, especially in Asia, for 4G femtocells deployed on every floor inside office towers. These femtocells require 1588v2 timing, which can be delivered over Ethernet via a master clock NID connected to a single GPS receiver on the roof.
Serval family highlights include:
- VeriTime nanosecond-accurate IEEE1588v2 timing technology that can meet LTE and LTE-Advanced network requirements, even over variable-rate and asymmetric millimeter wave and microwave links;
- Support of multi-operator OAM&P and Service Level Agreements for Ethernet management, enabling RAN sharing and third party backhaul ownership;
- Hierarchical QoS (H-QoS) support for complex delivery of traffic with rich media content over 4G networks;
- Integrated MIPS processor which allows advanced protocol support without a discrete CPU in the board design, reducing overall BOM costs; and
- Power dissipation under 1.5W
Samples of Serval Lite are available now.