Fujitsu Develops Optical Tech Unlocking 1.2 Tbps per Wavelength

Fujitsu today announced it cracked Tbps+ speeds on fiber networking communication, unlocking the ability to transfer the equivalent to six 25GB Blu-ray discs in a single second. 

The company announced its most recent photonics technology (which is expected to have market availability by early 2023) unlocks up to 1.2 Tbps per wavelength, while enabling four times longer signal reach before the signal begins to decohere. With the roll-out of 5G tech and the development of even faster communication protocols, there'll be a greater and greater need to efficiently and rapidly shuffle data around — something photonics is particularly keen at.

Fujitsu claims breakthroughs across the board; not only are the signal reach and bandwidth per wavelength figures unheard of, but the company also managed to cut power consumption down to an industry-leading 120mW per transmission capacity (Gbps). 

The approach is an integrated one, and isn't limited to materials breakthroughs. Fujitsu designed its new optical networking solution in parallel with the world's first liquid-cooling solution for optical networking. A state-of-the-art digital signal processing LSI (DSP) is also deployed in the self-contained solution, which even pairs a low-level machine learning capability that aims to optimize power consumption and traffic. 

This last point is crucial as, according to Fujitsu, an optical networking system is rarely optimized to its implementation environment, and can't easily adapt to changing circumstances (such as signal or equipment degradation). The company says implementation of its machine learning system makes it possible to automatically capture and analyze the status of optical network components such as optical fibers and optical transmission systems with a high degree of accuracy, allowing for on-the-fly adjustments according to operating conditions.

All the innovations have led to a system that isn't limited to breaking records in the amount of data it can transmit. Fujitsu's networking solution also occupies a third of the space of a conventional air-cooled optical networking solution and has a greater operational capacity due to the improved cooling system. 

According to the company, all these improvements have led to a severely cut-down CO2 footprint for their networking solution (the company quotes a 70% reduction across manufacturing, logistics, and operation), which is definitely more than a simple checkmark on the "environmental sustainability" book.