Corning Expands Portfolio of Lithium Niobate Modulators; New Products From Corning OTI Address Market Demand for Highly Integrated Photonic Devices.

Business Editors

Optical Fiber Communications 2002

CORNING, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 13, 2002

Corning Incorporated (NYSE: GLW) today introduced the Integrated Modulator Driver Module (IMDM), a device which includes a state-of-the-art 12.5 Gb/s Lithium Niobate (LiNbO3) modulator, an RF modulator driver and a bias control circuit in the thinnest package on the market. Manufactured by Corning, OTI in Milan, Italy, the IMDM will be demonstrated live at the Optical Fiber Conference (OFC) 2002, March 19-22, in Anaheim, CA.

Integration of these devices significantly reduces overall system costs. The device's "plug and play" design connects the laser source, the RF signal and the DC power, simplifying the operations in the transponder manufacturing process. This feature reduces fiber handling, lessens the number of discrete components and cuts testing time - contributing significantly to an overall system cost reduction. The IMDM device also removes the tedious process of matching RF drivers with modulators, and keeps the bias point of LiNbO3 modulators under control.

The IMDM is available for modulation speeds up to 12.5 Gb/s, and will be available soon at 40 Gb/s. "The IMDM exemplifies Corning's ability to drive down overall system costs through integration," said Daniele Fadini, product management director, Corning OTI. "By integrating the drivers and bias control circuitry with our LiNb03 modulators, we offer customers the advantages of plug and play capability, and reduce their board space requirements."

Corning will also unveil three new small form factor "stand alone" modulators at 2.5 Gb/s and 12.5 Gb/s at OFC. The new devices, available with an integrated monitor photodiode, enable the design of transponders compliant with the MSA 300 pin standards.

"In addition to the new modulators, we are extending the option of an integrated monitor photodiode and/or an integrated variable optical attenuator (VOA) to most modulators in our product portfolio," said Stefano Grieco, vice president, sales and marketing for Corning OTI. "As another example of our focus on integration, these modulators will allow network designers to reduce overall cost by up to 15% and space requirements by up to 60%.

For more information about Corning OTI products visit the Corning booth (no.3021) at OFC March 19-22 in Anaheim, CA, or visit www.corning.com/corningoti.

Established in 1851, Corning Incorporated (www.corning.com) creates leading-edge technologies for the fastest-growing markets of the world's economy. Corning manufactures optical fiber, cable and photonic products for the telecommunications industry, and high-performance displays and components for television, information technology and other communications-related industries. The company also uses advanced materials to manufacture products for scientific, semiconductor and environmental markets. Corning revenues for 2001 were $6.3 billion.