As the optical products guys at Silicon Labs, a chip company in Austin, Texas, like to say, “There is light at the end of the fiber.” While it’s good news, we probably won’t see that light until 2005. Some predict that the optical fiber business will begin a rebound in 2004. If that happens, it won’t be a significant recovery. But at this point, even that’s a positive indication given the serious decline over the past few years.
The telecommunications business, the primary source of optical fiber revenue, is slowly downsizing. At best, it’s a replacement/upgrade market. There’s a glut of fiber around the world, and most of it will stay dark for the immediate future. But don’t be fooled. Optical fiber still has life, as it’s the fastest communications medium on the planet. We can look forward to an expanded fiber-interconnected Internet. And more and more, we’re exploring fiber’s ability to transmit data at the highest of speeds in metro networks, local-area networks (LANs), and even in newer storage-area networks (SANs) and passive optical networks (PONs).
The largest segment of the fiber-optic business involves the Sonet/SDH wide-area networks (WANs) that form the backbone of the long-distance telephone system and the Internet. WANs operate primarily at 2.5 Gbits/s (OC-48), but many are upgrading to 10 Gbits/s (OC-192). Furthermore, capacity in these systems is being increased by incorporating dense wavelength-division multiplexing (DWDM), where multiple wavelengths of IR light carry high-speed data over a single fiber.
Fiber is also used in metropolitan area networks (MANs), where it links LANs to the wide-area networks (WANs) and performs other information-carrying duties. One such example is hybrid-fiber networks used by cable TV companies. More and more fiber MANs are expected in the future, many of which will still use Sonet/SDH. However, some new networks will move to 1-Gbit or 10-Gbit Ethernet (1 GE or 10 GE).
Fiber also is encroaching into the LAN space. High-speed LAN backbones in large corporations or government agencies are opting for 1 GE or 10 GE. While 1 GE copper to the desktop is popular, the backbone of the LAN will move to fiber as the need for speed, distance, and capacity increases.
PONs also will grow in usage as telecom carriers begin to implement fiber to the home, curb, or premises (FTTx). PONs are ideal for the last/first mile connections, because their cost and ease of implementation make them competitive with other broadband strategies.
SANs are another bright spot for fiber. With the burgeoning need for massive storage of data, SANs have ramped up significantly over the years. And there’s no reason for any letup, as an increasing amount of data centers and large organizations implement massive data storage systems. These use Fibre Channel (FC) interconnections, which communicate at 1, 2, or 4 Gbits/s. Also entering the fray will be 10-Gbit/s FC systems. The newer Internet small systems computer interface (iSCSI) that uses IP over 1 GE or 10 GE to link servers to storage systems is another popular arena.
Many mergers, bankruptcies, acquisitions, and other consolidations have occurred during the downturn. The result is a leaner and meaner fiber-optical industry poised for the eventual recovery. With faster chips, improved optical components, and some new innovations, the forthcoming optical systems will be better than ever. They will continue as the fastest medium in the universe.
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