London scientists have reported a new record in the fiber optic network. Here they are said to have achieved a data rate of an impressive 178.08 terabits per second.
Cooperation between Japan and England
With the immensely high data rate, the University College of London (UCL) has doubled the speed of the world’s fastest Internet connection to date. In addition, they were able to beat the previous world record. This was one fifth slower. The test object was a 40 km long fiber optic network. The experiment was a collaboration between a Japanese telecommunications operator and the UCL.
Various amplifier technologies
But how did the scientists achieve these high data transmission rates? The key to success was probably a combination of several different amplifier technologies. These technologies combined to boost the signal. The researchers used what are known as self-developed geometric shaping constellations. This involves adapting and optimizing the light signals accordingly. This significantly increases the signal transmission within the fiber optic network. The focus here is on each individual wave.
Optimization of current fiber optic networks possible
The research group found out that so-called rare-earth glass fiber amplifiers can lead to a significant signal improvement. Especially the combination for Raman spectroscopy provides a much better efficiency. Finally, it was possible to observe that no gaps could be detected between the individual amplification bands. This enabled the scientists to literally achieve seamless and correspondingly fast data transmission. We normal consumers could even benefit from the research results of the UCL. After all, the researchers found out that existing fiber optic networks could be upgraded with the amplifiers. This should further increase future Internet speeds.
