In a breakthrough for the fibre optics industry, the Williams Communications Group in the US recently tested an ultra long-haul optical fibre transport solution in which optical signals were transmitted over 6 400 kilometres without electrical regeneration.
The implications for the fibre optic industry are significant, says Dave Fawcett CEO of Fibreplus, one of South Africa`s leading distributors of fibre cabling and accessories.
"It`s a major milestone for the industry because it allows future telecommunications carriers in South Africa to design all-optical networks that could span the country and replace copper," he says.
The tests were based on Raman amplification techniques and carried out on installed fibre - not in laboratory conditions.
"This is important," says Fawcett, "because in laboratory experiments it`s possible to select and tweak the properties of every metre of fibre in the quest for the best results. That`s obviously not practicable in a real-world network."
Fawcett adds that long distance fibre optic transmission have not been economically viable up to now. "Regeneration is expensive, thus reducing the number of times this needs to be done is a big plus which will have an impact on installation costs and ultimately end user telephone costs in the future," he adds.
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