Scientists achieve data transfer of 44.2 Tbit/s over fiber optic cable

Scientists from various universities have sent 44.2 terabits per second of data over an existing fiber optic cable. That is a record, which was achieved via a ‘micro-comb’. Laser beams are fired in a bundled manner.

The researchers from the Australian universities of Monash, Swinburne and RMIT are publishing their results in the scientific journal Nature. The scientists managed to transmit 44.2 Tbit/s over a distance of 75 kilometers. This happened via the C-band at 1550nm. According to the researchers, this is the first time that the technology has been used in this way outside a laboratory setting.

To achieve the speed, the researchers used a so-called ‘micro comb’, a technology that is now more than ten years old, but until now it was mainly used in laboratories. The micro comb uses hardware that is currently also in existing telecom networks. In addition, only one integrated chip was used for the study. By using that technique, the method is ‘scalable for the future’, say the scientists.

A special kind of microcomb was used for the experiment. Soliton crystals allowed the scientists to achieve higher efficiency. A microcomb is an optical chip that can focus light signals with a high but stable frequency.