Keysight Enables End-to-End Electrical-Optical-Electrical Simulation for Data Center and Ethernet Design

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Key Terms

serdes technical

SerDes (short for serializer/deserializer) is an electronic function that converts parallel streams of data into a single fast serial stream and then converts it back, like packing many lanes of traffic into one high-speed highway and unpacking them at the other end. Investors care because SerDes chips and blocks determine how quickly and efficiently devices, data centers and networks can move information; improvements or bottlenecks affect product performance, production costs, and demand across the semiconductor and communications supply chain.

wavelength division multiplexing technical

Wavelength division multiplexing is a fiber-optic technique that sends multiple separate streams of data down a single optical cable by using different colors (wavelengths) of light, like running many lanes of traffic on the same road. It matters to investors because it multiplies network capacity and can lower the cost of adding bandwidth, influencing the revenue and competitiveness of telecom providers and equipment makers as demand for data grows.

photonic integrated circuits technical

Photonic integrated circuits are chips that use tiny optical components to generate, route and detect light instead of moving electrical signals, performing functions similar to electronic computer chips but with photons. They matter to investors because they can enable much faster data transfer and lower power use in telecommunications, data centers and sensing, creating new markets and potential cost advantages — but they also require specialized manufacturing and carry technology and supply risks.

full-duplex technical

Full-duplex describes a communication system that can send and receive information at the same time, like two people talking simultaneously on a phone call rather than taking turns. For investors, full-duplex capability can mean higher performance and lower delays for products and services that depend on real-time data exchange — often translating into competitive advantages, higher product value, or new market opportunities for companies that adopt it.

photonic ic technical

A photonic IC is a miniature circuit that routes and manipulates light signals on a single chip, performing functions that electronic chips do with electricity but using photons instead of electrons. Think of it as a compact highway system for light that can carry data faster and with less energy than traditional electronic components; investors care because photonic ICs can lower operating costs, enable higher-speed communications and sensing products, and open new markets where speed, power efficiency, or bandwidth create competitive advantage.

05/21/2026 - 11:00 AM

Engineering teams can now catch cross-domain design issues before committing to silicon

SANTA ROSA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Keysight Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: KEYS) today introduced an Electrical-Optical-Electrical (EOE) simulation solution in ADS 2026. Engineers can now simulate electrical-to-optical-to-electrical signal chains within a single design environment. This capability is increasingly important as AI infrastructure and high-performance computing drive demand for faster optical links. This type of analysis is essential for setting architecture and evaluating performance.

Engineer performing end-to-end electro-optic (EOE) simulations in Keysight ADS Photonic Designer to analyze photonic integrated circuits, electronic interfaces, and system-level signal integrity for next-generation high-speed optical interconnects.

By 2029, 87% of hyperscale optical transceivers will operate at 800Gbps or higher, with 1.6Tbps and 3.2Tbps on the horizon. With optical links connecting CPUs, GPUs, and high-speed SerDes interfaces, teams need to model interactions across electrical and optical domains. Legacy simulation workflows handle these separately, requiring the results from different tools to be manually stitched together, potentially missing cross-domain effects that impact system performance.

The breakthrough EOE capability in ADS 2026 enables engineers to simulate the complete signal path, from transmitters through optical and photonic circuits to electrical receivers, in a unified workflow. The solution leverages Keysight's High Speed Digital workflow with Keysight Photonic Designer. By simulating the mixed-domain signal chain before hardware implementation, teams can evaluate electrical and optical design tradeoffs and assess signal integrity against high-speed standards earlier in the design cycle.

Key benefits of the solution include:

Detect signal integrity issues across electrical and optical domains before prototyping: Simulate high-speed SerDes digital channels and photonics IC behavior together, catching cross-domain issues that surface only when both domains are modeled simultaneously.
Simulate bidirectional optical links as they behave in the real world: Full-duplex optical simulation captures forward and backward signal propagation within an EOE channel, a capability not previously available.
Assess nonlinear effects across multiple wavelengths for multi-lane interconnects: Wavelength division multiplexing support within EOE simulation flows lets engineers evaluate how optical nonlinearities affect performance across wavelengths, a growing concern as 800G and 1.6T optical links use multiple wavelengths simultaneously on the same waveguide. These modulated wavelengths and non-linearities can be simulated together as a system.
Obtain a realistic view of system-level signal quality: Noise modeling spans the electrical and optical domains simultaneously, enabling engineers to assess performance under realistic conditions rather than modeling each domain in isolation.
Catch nonlinear effects before they reach hardware: Modulator bias-dependent and large-signal nonlinear effects are captured within end-to-end simulations.
Make electrical-optical design tradeoffs in one workflow: Patented multi-domain co-simulation bridges the electrical channel and optical envelope simulators, eliminating the need to move between separate tools to evaluate tradeoffs.

Beyond system-level EOE simulation, ADS 2026 covers the full design flow from system down to component optimization. Through PDK support at the circuit level and Keysight RSoft integration at the component level, engineers get a true representation of photonic IC behavior, with no disconnect between the real chip and system-level simulation.

Niels Fache, Senior Vice President, Keysight, said: “AI infrastructure depends on 800 Gbps and 1.6 Tbps optical links to move data at scale. At these speeds, electrical and optical performance can no longer be modeled separately. With ADS 2026, engineering teams now have the ability to simulate those interactions before committing to silicon."

Resources:

Application Note: EOE Simulations
Web Page: Keysight ADS 2026 Update 2
Web Page: Keysight Photonic Design Automation Software
Web Page: Keysight RSoft Photonic Design Tools
Webinar: End-to-End Co-Design for Ethernet: Bridging Photonics and Electronics with EOE Simulation
Video: End-to-End EOE Simulations

About Keysight Technologies

At Keysight (NYSE: KEYS), we inspire and empower innovators to bring world-changing technologies to life. As an S&P 500 company, we’re delivering market-leading design, emulation, and test solutions to help engineers develop and deploy faster, with less risk, throughout the entire product life cycle. We’re a global innovation partner enabling customers in communications, industrial automation, aerospace and defense, automotive, semiconductor, and general electronics markets to accelerate innovation to connect and secure the world. Learn more at Keysight Newsroom and www.keysight.com.