The terabit speed achieved will present a major leap forward over current internet-backbone network limits
Researchers revealed a newly-refined data-transmission technique that can deliver one terabit per second (Tbps) over optical fiber. Nokia Bell Labs, Deutsche Telekom T-Labs, and the Technical University of Munich will be showing off how a technique called Probabilistic Constellation Shaping, or PCS, can deliver blistering 1Tbps speeds over a fiber connection.
Mobile devices continue to become powerful productivity machines. But they are also major security risks if they aren't managed properly. The work provides more momentum behind the push to bring terabit networks to reality. And this follows another optical breakthrough earlier this year by researchers at University College London, who achieved speeds of 1.25Tbps.
To put that in perspective, it is been noticed that this speed was fast enough to download an entire Games of Thrones series in high definition within one second. Of course, thanks to streaming services such as Netflix, video bingeing doesn't require downloading a whole series at once and 5Mbps will suffice for HD-quality streaming.
Still, terabit-speed networks will meet growing demand for higher-capacity core networks, thanks in large part to streaming. Terabit speeds will present a major leap forward over current internet-backbone network limits of 40Gbps to 100Gbps.
For comparison on the consumer side, Alphabet's Google Fiber embryonic US fiber-to-the-premises service is offering 1Gbps connections.Nokia Bell Labs, which came to Nokia via its Alcatel Lucent acquisition last year, says its optical breakthrough will allow operators and enterprises to improve the distance and capacity of high-speed data transmissions in optical metro and core networks.
“The trial of the novel modulation approach, known as Probabilistic Constellation Shaping (PCS), uses quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) formats to achieve higher transmission capacity over a given channel to significantly improve the spectral efficiency of optical communications”, Nokia explains.
“The success of the close collaboration with Nokia Bell Labs, who further developed the technology, and Deutsche Telekom T-Labs, who tested it under real conditions, is satisfying confirmation that TUM engineering is a label of outstanding quality, and that TUM teaching gives our students the intellectual tools to compete, succeed and lead globally”, Technical University of Munich professor Gerhard Kramer said.
