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The Optical Fiber Communications Conference 2002 (OFC 2002)—the world’s largest optical fiber communications conference—took place in the city of Anaheim, California in March 2002. Researchers’ attention was focused on a paper presented in the post deadline paper session. Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd. (SEI) announced that it had set a new world record for low-attenuation optical fiber performance.
Optical communications differs from conventional telecommunications in two significant ways. First, it provides far greater data transmission capacity. A single fiber optic cable thinner than a human hair can carry a volume of data equivalent to tens of thousands of copper cable telephone lines. For this reason, optical fiber is considered ideal for the Internet, which is often used for the exchange of large volumes of data such as video signal.
Second, optical fiber offers longer transmission distances. Optical signals can travel without a repeater over 100 km or so of cable. This reduces infrastructure costs, because fewer repeaters are required for amplifying signals over long distances. The reason behind progressive reduction in international phone charges in Japan and elsewhere is the significant cost savings produced by switching to optical fiber cables. Longer transmission distances are possible because of reduced attenuation; whereas the electrical signal gradually attenuates (weakens) in the process of traveling down the copper wire in a conventional telecommunications system, the attenuation of an optical signal going through an optical fiber cable is far less. Some attenuation is inevitable—attenuation for standard optical fiber is 0.19dB/km. |
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| Low-attenuation Z-PLUS Fiber has the perfect properties for building high-capacity long-distance systems able to meet optical communications needs as they grow evermore demanding. |
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