what happened
A team of scientists from Aston University in the UK has achieved a breakthrough in data transmission, setting a new global benchmark.
They collaborated with Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications Technology and the US’s Nokia Bell Labs to successfully transmit data at an unprecedented speed of 301 million megabits per second.
This speed is 4.5 million times faster than the average UK broadband speed and 1 million times faster than the US average.
Novel wavebands key to accelerating goals
The secret behind this extraordinary achievement lies in the use of innovative wavelength bands not typically used in conventional fiber optic systems.
Aston University researcher Ian Phillips explains that these new wavelength bands can be compared to “different colors of light traveling along an optical fiber”.
In addition to the commercially available C and L bands, data are sent via optical fiber using two additional spectral bands, E-band and S-band.
University-designed groundbreaking optical amplifier
Aston University has developed an optical amplifier that allows data wavelengths to operate in the E-band, which is around three times wider than traditional wavelengths used for data transmission.
This achievement marks the first time an E-band channel has been successfully replicated in a controlled environment.
This innovative approach requires no new infrastructure and can significantly speed up the internet using existing fiber optic cables.