Researchers at Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) broke a record by reaching a massive speed of 22.9 petabits per second over a single fiber optic cable. This speed corresponds to more than 20 times the speed of all global internet traffic. It is also double the previous record of 10.66 petabits/s.Global internet traffic per second includes the data transmitted between all computers on the internet in one second, such as all websites, video streaming, file downloads, etc. Therefore, the speed achieved is incredibly high.
They used multiplexing technology
To cope with more internet traffic, NICT researchers used multiplexing technology, which uses space and wavelengths in fiber optic communications. We can think of multiplexing as widening a road, adding more lanes and traffic signals to transmit more data.
The researchers were able to transmit data between 0.3 and 0.7 petabits/s from each hair (core) in the fiber cable. When these fiber bundles came together, a speed of 22.9 petabits was achieved.
38 fiber bristles used in each cable
The NICT team achieved this success using cutting-edge technologies. Instead of a single core transmitting data in one cable, they developed a 38-core cable that can transmit data in three modes and have a total of 114 spatial channels. Thus, data transmission capacity could be increased by using various independent data channels in different band wavelengths. Each mode is placed in its own spatial channel, reaching a bandwidth of 18.8 terahertz with 750 wavelength channels across the S, C, and L bands.
The researchers state that with further optimization in error correction, speeds of 24.7 petabits/s can be achieved, which is 1000 times faster than current fiber optic systems. They say this development is an important step in the development of future ultra-large capacity fiber optic networks.
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