Category: Cabling

Fiber Capacity Mining, Then and Now

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Ever since the invention of single mode fiber optic cable decades ago, the industry has continued to develop new ways of increasing the amount of data that can be transmitted over an optical fiber link. Two significant developments have improved fiber utilization: (1) the simultaneous transmission of multiple lasers of different wavelengths over a single fiber — a technique called wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), and (2) coherent transmission using digital signal processors (DSPs) to modulate and detect multi-levels in both phase and amplitude of laser light on two polarizations, resulting in increased spectral efficiency. This white paper reviews the technological advancements that have increased the capacity of information that can be transmitted over a single mode fiber link and discusses how parameters in coherent transmission such as modulation order, baud rate, and transmission shaping determine overall fiber capacity.

Do You Know about Active Optical Cables (AOCs)?

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Active optical cables (AOCs) are used for short-range multi-lane data communication and interconnect applications. Usually, the wire transmission of optical communication should belong to passive part, but AOC is an exception. AOCs consist of multimode optical fiber, fiber optic transceivers, control chip and modules. They use electrical-to-optical conversion on the cable ends to improve speed and distance performance of the cable without sacrificing compatibility with standard electrical interfaces.

Webinar: Single-Mode Fiber – The perfect fit for your evolving network

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The demands of new and emerging technologies – things like 5G, BIoT and DAS – present both opportunities and challenges for enterprise fiber networks. Until recently, multimode transceivers were orders of magnitude less expensive than their single-mode counterparts, making multimode the fiber of choice for many enterprise network designers. Today, the cost of single-mode transceivers has come down significantly, making the increased bandwidth and longer distances made possible by single-mode fiber much more attractive. This presentation discusses why you may want to include single-mode fiber in your enterprise network.

Cabling future-ready commercial office buildings

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The concept of networking in office buildings evolving from a competitive selling feature to a necessary fourth utility alongside electricity, gas, and water has developed in the last 10 years. The need to enable more instrumentation and control points inside buildings requires wired and wireless networks to connect them back to the services that orchestrate their overall operations. The fourth utility has to span from basement to roof, and from carpeted floors to the parking garage. Cabling infrastructure that is not future-ready will require replacement or augmentation to accommodate the inevitable changes to the attached active electronics over the cabling’s 20-year useful life.

Cable Testing 101: What is the Difference Between OM3 and OM4?

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OM3 and OM4 multimode fiber are two common types of fiber used in local area networks–typically in backbone cabling between telecommunications rooms and in the data center between main networking and storage area network (SAN) switches. Both of these fiber types are considered laser-optimized 50/125 multimode fiber, meaning they both have a 50 micron (µm) diameter core and a 125 µm diameter cladding, which is a special coating that prevents light from escaping the core. Both fiber types use the same connectors, the same termination and the same transceivers–vertical-cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) that emit infrared light at 850 nanometers (nm). So, what’s different?

In-Vehicle Optical Multi-Gigabit Communications

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The automotive industry is currently seeking technologies to enable 10 Gbps communications. This derives from the growing need for data interchange between sensors and electronic control units in the car. Infotainment, ADAS and growing levels of autonomy are the key trends that explain the exponential growth of data rates: 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps and to 10 Gbps. Some OEMs are even talking about 25 and 50 Gbps for the upcoming years.10GBASE-SR is the current standard by IEEE that establishes a communications channel in optical fiber at 10 Gbps. Although well-established for industrial use, it is not suitable for automotive applications.

AFL receives CPR certification for data center fiber-optic cables

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AFL has received Construction Products Regulation (CPR) certification for certain fiber-optic cables including its Sub-Unitized MicroCore 2.0 and MicroCore 3.0, plus its Ruggedized MicroCore, product lines. CPR, often recognized as “CE marked,” defines minimum cable fire safety standard (EuroClasses) based on installation and type of building. Each country sets its own minimum EuroClass requirements for installation cables.

Webinar: Winning at the Edge

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Watch this webinar from Legrand on demand. Edge is more than just a buzzword, it’s an opportunity. When you hear: Micro Data Center, Mini Data Center, Localized Data Center, Distributed Computing, Regional Data Center – think Edge! This webinar covers Edge Computing and the driving forces behind this movement. It includes real examples of how Legrand is helping our customers win at the Edge. What are these Edge applications? How did we win? And most importantly, how can you win in this space?