Scientists from Japan have developed a new type of distributed feedback (DFB) laser and showed that it can be used to transmit data at speeds of 200 Gb/s over a record distance of 10 kilometers. This research could help advance network technology that would allow internet data centers to handle unprecedented…
Physicists at the University of Bath in the UK have developed a new kind of fiber designed to enhance the robustness of networks. This robustness could prove to be especially important in the coming age of quantum networks. The team has fabricated optical fibers that can protect light using the mathematics of topology. Best of all, these modified fibers are easily scalable, meaning the structure of each fiber can be preserved over thousands of kilometers.
Assembled here, in no particular order, are the top 12 chaotic ICT rack, cabinet, and patch cord fail scenarios recently seen posted to Reddit’s social media photo subgroups chronicling ubiquitous “cablefail” and “cablegore” conditions, as discovered by techs in the field.
Each week this month, CI&M parent company Endeavor Business Media (EBM) will be launching 5 new cross-market “Market Moves” newsletters, covering key industry sectors which transect the breadth of EBM’s publications.
As the first installment of the 5 new cross-market “Market Moves” newsletters, EBM has today officially launched its Market Moves Infrastructure newsletter.
When the Fiber Optic Association (FOA) began online certification testing, the results showed an unusual area of confusion. 25% of the test-takers missed the answer to what should have been a simple question: “What do you strip when you strip fiber for splicing or termination?” Instead of answering “the buffer coating,” a quarter of students answered that you strip the cladding. Even some instructors on their instructor certification exams answered that question incorrectly.
NTT-Advanced Technology Research cites that 80% of network problems are due to dirty connectors, and the No. 1 cause of network failure is contaminated connectors. For MPOs, inspection and cleaning become even more critical. Given that a single dirty or damaged connector can impact 24 fibers—or more—with MPO connectors, taking critical communications lines out of service for troubleshooting will cause service interruptions for numerous customers.
How can the performance of MPO links be ensured? It all starts with testing. There are the five essential things you need to do: connector inspection, proper cleaning, polarity-type validation, continuity confirmation, and choosing the right referencing method.
Senko Advanced Components, Inc. announced that its SN Uniboot connector was awarded Platinum Cabling Innovators honors, as presented by Cabling Installation & Maintenance at the at the recent BICSI Fall Conference 2022 (Sep. 25-29) in Las Vegas.
The SN Uniboot is a connector with a revolutionary design that allows four SN duplex connectors to be patched simultaneously in one operation. As noted by Senko, unlike 8-fiber MPO connectors comprising single polymer ferrules, the SN Uniboot’s design utilizes eight ceramic 1.25 mm ferrules that deliver carrier-grade performance and reliability.
Originally designed for use in multi-channel 400G data center transceivers within spine/leaf architectures, Senko reports that “the SN is proving to be much more than just a high data-rate equipment connection. The industry is fast discovering that when deployed as a backbone trunk solution, the SN Uniboot has significant benefits compared with existing legacy solutions,” adds a company statement.
EXFO’s Vincent Racine discusses the fundamental role that MPO connectivity plays in network densification. The rise in popularity of MPO connectivity has brought to light certain challenges in the field, including some related to testing and polarity. Racine describes the practicalities of meeting these challenges in the field using test equipment.
Subsea or submarine cables are fiber optic cables that connect countries across the world via cables laid on the ocean floor. These cables – often thousands of miles in length – are able to transmit huge amounts of data rapidly from one point to another. According to a 2019 report by StableSeas, commercial undersea cables transmit 97% of this internet and telecommunications data. With such heavy reliance on the technology, there’s no denying that submarine cabling is supporting the global economy, and an outage could have catastrophic consequences, which makes proper testing of submarine networks critical.
In their latest revision (September 2022), the Telecom Industry Association (TIA) added MPO test requirements and procedures to their optical fiber cabling component standard, ANSI/TIA-568.3-E.
The revision adds MPO-specific requirements referencing TIA-526-28. TIA-526-28 is an adoption of IEC 61280-4-5 and deals with attenuation measurement of MPO-terminated fiber optic cabling plant using test equipment with MPO interfaces.
