Conexant Begins Major Expansion of Fiber-Optic Networking Family with Industry's Highest-Density Switch Device.

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 29, 1999--

Conexant's Single-chip 68x68 High-isolation Crosspoint Switch is

Company's First in This Market Segment

New Device Slashes Costs of Internet Backbone Equipment, and Will

be Followed by Solutions Spanning End-to-end Transmission in the

Fiber-optic Backbone of Today's High-speed, Multi-service

Communications Networks

Conexant Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CNXT) today announced the industry's highest-density semiconductor solution for developing fiber-optic communications systems at the core of today's large multi-service networks. A key addition to Conexant's growing family of optical networking solutions, the single-chip CXS6803 high-isolation crosspoint switch cuts the chip-count and power-consumption requirements of high-bandwidth, fiber-optic communications systems by 30 percent while boosting data throughput to as much as 204 Gigabits per second (Gbps).

Conexant worked closely with Alcatel, its lead customer for the CXS6803, to develop a solution that provides superior electrical performance in a cost-effective, power-efficient package for large crosspoint switch configurations. Today's digital crosspoint-switching matrix is the most common architecture for handling terabits of Internet traffic and other high-volume communications requirements, and is under pressure to cost-effectively enable higher bandwidth as the industry upgrades from 44.7 megabit-per-second (Mbps) T3 networks to 2.4 Gbps (OC-48) and 10 Gbps (OC-192) networks. Until now, OC-48 crosspoint switch devices could only support up to 17-port-by-17-port (17x17) matrices and 1161 chips were needed to create the 2048x2048 matrices that most systems demand. The CXS6803 switch puts an entire 68x68 matrix on a single chip for OC-48 networks, while supporting forward error-correction (FEC) up to 3.2 Gbps.

"We evaluated all available suppliers before choosing Conexant to define and develop this high-density crosspoint switch solution for Alcatel's optical product," said John M. Ellenich, hardware manager for Alcatel's Optical Networking Division. "Conexant's highly-skilled, multi-disciplinary technical team worked with our engineers to both define and implement this solution on a very rapid timetable. The result was a total solution, from cutting-edge silicon technology to a first-class electrical design with superior board-signal fidelity, power efficiency, packaging and thermal performance."

"This is the solution that designers of OC-48 fiber-optic networking equipment have been waiting for, as they struggle to meet today's intense demand for bandwidth," said Achim Hill, Business Director for the Integrated Circuits for Optical Networks (ICON) group within Conexant's Network Access Division. "We're at the sweet spot of the market, tripling the density of any other OC-48 solution while taking throughput well past OC-48 rates. This breakthrough product kicks off a major product expansion initiative for Conexant as we set our sights on building the industry's broadest line of fiber-optic IC solutions for OC-48 and OC-192 networks and beyond, including transceivers, front-end pre-amps, clock-and-data-recovery (CDR) circuits, laser drivers, and multiplexers and demultiplexers."

Conexant's CXS6803 differential 3 Gbps 68x68 crosspoint switch uses a high-isolation design that minimizes the amount of a signal's short-term phase variation - or "jitter" - caused by crosstalk in a circuit. Even when all channels are operating, the CXS6803 crosspoint switch will generate only 7 picoseconds (ps) of Root Mean Square (RMS) jitter, which means that it can be used to develop larger cascaded switches without having to add inter-stage CDR circuits. The CXS6803 switch also includes multicasting/broadcasting features, an onboard pseudorandom generator transmitter (PRBS TX) and receiver (PRBS RX) for system diagnostics, and a built-in temperature monitor.

Conexant plans to quickly follow the CXS6803 switch with a 16x16 solution for the OC-192 marketplace. "We will be offering a complete family of digital cross-connect products, in addition to our current and planned lineup of 10 Gbps high performance transceiver solutions," said K. Joseph Sikias, senior product line marketing manager.

Conexant's CXS6803 crosspoint switch will be available in sample quantities in October, and is scheduled to enter volume production in the first quarter of 2000. The switch is packaged in a 580 ball-cavity-down ball grid array (BGA), and manufactured using Silicon BiCMOS process technology, one of several small-geometry, high-volume options at Conexant's Newport Beach and Newbury Park, Calif., facilities. Other options include Gallium Arsenide, Bipolar, CMOS, and Silicon Germanium process. The CXS6803 switch is priced at $1,195.00 per unit in OEM volumes of 1000.

With revenues of more than $1.2 billion, Conexant is the world's largest independent company focused exclusively on providing semiconductor products for communications electronics. With more than 30 years of experience in developing communications technology, the company draws upon its expertise in mixed-signal processing to deliver integrated systems and semiconductor products for a broad range of communications applications. These products facilitate communications worldwide through wireline voice and data communications networks, cordless and cellular wireless telephony systems, personal imaging devices and equipment, and emerging cable and wireless broadband communications networks. The company aligns its business into five product platforms: Network Access, Wireless Communications, Digital Infotainment, Personal Imaging, and Personal Computing. Conexant is a member of the Nasdaq-100 Index, which represents the largest and most active stocks listed on The Nasdaq Stock Market across major industry groups.

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