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# Optical transceiver modules \(illustrative\)

A pluggable optical transceiver turns the electrical signals on a host board into light for a fiber link, and back. This topic uses an original 3D model of an OSFP-style module to show its parts.

OSFP stands for Octal Small Form Factor Pluggable. The OSFP MSA group announced the form factor in March 2017 for 400G optics, with eight electrical lanes, and designed it to carry 800G modules as lane speeds rose.


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OSFP-style transceiver, turntable view

<span id="osfp-transceiver__fig-osfp-turntable"></span>![Animated 3D model of a pluggable optical transceiver turning on its axis](../media/osfp-turntable.gif "OSFP-style transceiver, turntable view")

![3D model of a pluggable optical transceiver](../media/osfp-hero.png "OSFP-style transceiver, turntable view")

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**Note:** The model is an original, generic design for illustration. It is not a Google part or any vendor's product.

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## Parts of the module

Heat-sink fins
:   Run along the top of the shell and carry heat into the switch's airflow.

Optical port
:   The front opening where the fiber connector plugs in.

Pull tab
:   Releases the latch so you can remove the module from its cage.

Edge connector
:   Gold contacts at the rear that mate with the host connector inside the cage.

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## Video

The same model as a short video, for players that support MP4:

Nine-second video of the 3D transceiver model turning three times.  


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**Parent topic:**[Networking and access for Cloud TPU VMs](../topics/tpu-networking.md)

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