View Full Version : Breakthrough fiberoptic cable 2,500X faster than fastest internet - RT.com



JohnH_in_OKC
11-02-2014, 01:13 PM
World on a string: Breakthrough fiberoptic cable 2,500X faster than fastest internet (http://rt.com/news/200151-internet-speed-fiberoptic-cable/)

From: RT.com (http://rt.com/news/200151-internet-speed-fiberoptic-cable/)
Published time: October 28, 2014 17:13
Edited time: October 30, 2014 12:13

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Imagine downloading your favorite flick in 31 thousandths of a second. Such insane internet speeds are now a reality, with researchers rolling out a 255 terabits per second fiberoptic network which could transport the entire Internet on a single cable.

The cable, the joint effort of Dutch and US scientists, is 2,550 times faster than the fastest single-fiber links in commercial operation today.

In real terms, it could transfer a 1 GB movie in 0.03 milliseconds or the entire contents of your 1 terabit hard drive in about 31 milliseconds.

At this speed, a single fiber optic cable could theoretically carry the all the data on the internet at peak times.

But how does it work?

Researchers from Eindhoven University of Technology and the University of Central Florida employed a well-known but still cost-prohibitive technology; multi-mode fiber.

Normal fibre optic cables contain thousands of strands of glass or plastic fibre which are slightly thicker than the thread of a needle. These fibers can, in essence, only carry the light for a single laser.

The multi-mode fiber used by the researchers in contrast, has seven distinct cores in a hexagonal shape which are able to carry just as many distinct signals at one time. What’s more, they are squeezed down into the size of the same kind of fiber optic cables used to support the current transatlantic internet cables.

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In layman’s terms, it is something akin to a one way road being stretched out into a seven lane highway. This seven lane highway is then stretched into a multi-tier freeway, much like the so-called LA 'Stack'. Except in this case, it’s like a seven lane, multi-story drag race, with all the power from the individual vehicles being directed into a single source.

Researchers said that this new type of optical fibre is like "allowing 21 times more bandwidth than currently available in communication networks," which is 4-8 Terabits per second standard.

Moreover, the researchers have introduced "two additional orthogonal dimensions for data transportation - as if three cars can drive on top of each other in the same lane."

In their test, the researchers managed to reach speeds of 5.1 terabits for each of the seven carriers. Then, by using wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), which allows a number of optical carrier signals onto a single optical wire, they managed to cram 50 carriers down the seven cores, reaching the massive 255 terabit per second speed.

Measuring less than 200 microns in diameter, the new fiber does not take noticeably more space than conventional fibres already deployed, Dr. Chigo Okonkwo who led the work explained.

“These remarkable results, supported by the European Union Framework 7, MODEGAP, definitely give the possibility to achieve petabits per second transmission, which is the focus of the European Commission in the coming seven-year Horizon 2020 research program,” Okonkwo said.

Research results were recently published in the journal Nature Photonics.

While the technology for multi-mode fiber is in place, the price tag on replacing the millions of miles of existing cables could put the upgrade off for decades.

But with the mind-blistering implications of a world wide web operating at thousands of times its current maximum speed, the cost of holding off on the upgrade for too long may be incalculable.

Snowman
11-02-2014, 03:57 PM
This is pretty much a similar concept to what cable companies started rolling out a years ago to sell higher tier plans out of their existing lines, there is also a lot of room left for faster processors to utilize each existing fiber. Though realistically I only see this being deployed at organizations that already are willing to pay thousands to run dedicated lines to their campus, at least some of the other developments in recent years are more likely to be widespread in deployment at lower costs,

JohnH_in_OKC
11-02-2014, 04:45 PM
This is pretty much a similar concept to what cable companies started rolling out a years ago to sell higher tier plans out of their existing lines, there is also a lot of room left for faster processors to utilize each existing fiber. Though realistically I only see this being deployed at organizations that already are willing to pay thousands to run dedicated lines to their campus, at least some of the other developments in recent years are more likely to be widespread in deployment at lower costs,

You may be wrong. I too remember Internet 2 (http://www.internet2.edu/) which would connect major campuses, businesses and government agencies to a new fiber infrastructure. Internet 2's new proposed speed is supposed to be upgraded to just 8.8 terabits per second (http://broadbandbreakfast.com/2011/03/internet2-upgrades-speed-to-8-8-terabits-per-second/). But transferring a 1 terabit of data in 31 milliseconds is much faster than anything I've ever heard. If my calculation is correct, that is 32.2 terabits per second. This technology is apparently too expensive right now to replace the Internet's existing fiber infrastructure, but it is exciting to read of such potential future upgrades to the Internet.

So far, I haven't found a technical article from which to source this potential speed breakthrough.

Plutonic Panda
11-02-2014, 09:35 PM
and what better place to roll out out than right here in OKC where we will need to be reconstructing a lot of our streets? ;)

Filthy
11-03-2014, 08:33 AM
and what better place to roll out out than right here in OKC where we will need to be reconstructing a lot of our streets? ;)

I would somewhat disagree. The engineers building this new technology are looking for a more "walkable" internet connection friendly area.

Plutonic Panda
11-03-2014, 02:53 PM
I would somewhat disagree. The engineers building this new technology are looking for a more "walkable" internet connection friendly area.I'm not sure why you think that, but if that is true, OKC is really pushing walkable urban infill right now. Going to hit over 2 billion in private investment downtown next year for urban projects.

gopokes88
11-03-2014, 03:10 PM
I'm not sure why you think that, but if that is true, OKC is really pushing walkable urban infill right now. Going to hit over 2 billion in private investment downtown next year for urban projects.
That joke

Your head

(That joke went over your head)

Plutonic Panda
11-03-2014, 03:16 PM
I got it now

jn1780
11-04-2014, 07:50 AM
While the technology for multi-mode fiber is in place, the price tag on replacing the millions of miles of existing cables could put the upgrade off for decades.

Key statement here.

No one would be complaining about speed if everyone could just afford a regular fiber line directly to their house.

TheTravellers
11-04-2014, 10:58 AM
America Pays More For Internet, Gets Slower Speeds, Than Other Countries (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/31/internet-speeds_n_6078204.html)

"Internet users in Seoul continue to get the speediest connections at the lowest prices anywhere in the world, with speeds of one gigabit per second costing just $30 a month, according to annual report released Thursday the New America Foundation’s Open Technology Institute. By contrast, the best speeds that consumers in Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., or New York can get are half as fast and cost $300 a month."

windowphobe
11-04-2014, 05:03 PM
... the best speeds that consumers in [B]Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., or New York can get are half as fast and cost $300 a month.

Yeah. That's all the big providers feel like giving us: something half-fast.