Posted By: technopediasite
Advantages and disadvantages of optical fibers
Classical communications systems use electrical signals supported by coaxial cable,
copper, radio channel, etc. depending on the type of application to provide service.
These systems have some drawbacks and limitations that made it necessary to find
other ways to transfer data, based on other signals, such as fiber optics.
The main fact that a fiber use light energy as a transmission medium, it presents an
important set of advantages over other media used in the transmission of analog and
digital signals.
Advantages of optical fibers
The main advantages of optical fiber as transmission medium compared to other systems based on electromagnetic signals over metals are:
· They allow higher throughput. The signals travel throughout optical fiber cables approaching the speed of light (C=3.10 power 8 m/s) while the electrical signals travel through the cables at a speed between 50 - 70% of it, depending on the type of cable.
· Greater transmission capacity. They can be achieved speeds exceeding 2 Gbps, since the transmission rate increases with frequency. The fact to have inherently greater bandwidth enables the simultaneous transmission of large amounts of information. This property is directly related to the previous.
· They have total immunity to electromagnetic interference. Optical fiber does not produce any electromagnetic interference and it is not affected by radiation or nuclear electromagnetic pulses (NEMP) accompanying nuclear explosions.
· It do not exist problems to return to ground, and cross-interference reflection as in electrical transmission lines.
· Attenuation in transmission increases more slowly with distance than in the case of electrical cables, allowing greater distances between signal repeaters.
· It can get bit error rates typical of the order of 10 power 9 compared to rates of the order of 10 power 6 to reach those coaxial cables. This increases the effective speed of data transmission, reducing the number of retransmissions or the amount of redundant information necessary for detect and correct transmission errors.
· They do not have a risk of short circuit or other damage of electrical origin.
· Fiber optic cables, weigh one-tenth of copper shielded cables, for example. This is a very important consideration in military applications, typical of ships and aircraft.
· They usually have a much smaller diameter cable. In addition, they are much more flexible and easier to install than electrical cables.
· The fiber optic cables are suitable for use in a wide range of temperatures, since they support extreme temperatures better than cables with metallic origin.
· Unlike the copper cables, the transmitted signal cannot be drawn from a fiber without tampering it. This way, the optical fiber communication provides 100% signal security.
· It is possible to increase transmission capacity by adding new data channels using different wavelengths to those already employed, by WDM techniques.
· Optical fiber has a higher resistance to environments and corrosive liquids than electric cables.
· Raw materials, which are used in the manufacture of optical fibers, are very abundant, and it is hoped that eventually the manufacturing cost is reduced to a level similar to metallic cables.
· The operational half-life and average time between failures of a fiber optic cable are much higher than an electrical origin cable.
Disadvantages of optical fibers
Optical fiber not only has advantages. It also has some drawbacks, which it is not convenient to forget, because in some circumstances they limit studies and deployment projects in some networks based on this transmission medium:
· The cost, either installation or transmitters and receivers, is usually high compared with other types of communications. In addition, companies do not charge for time used, but the amount of information transferred to the computer that is measured in megabytes.
· Electro-optical conversion. Before connecting an electrical signal tooptical fiber, the signal must be converted to light spectrum (850, 1310 or 1550 nm). This conversion is carried out by an electronic device on the end of the transmitter, which provides an own format to the
communication signal and the signal becomes optics using a LED or a solid state laser.
· Particular installation. Because the fiber is predominantly silica glass, special techniques are needed for engineering and installation of the links. No longer apply conventional methods wire cable installation as, for example, welding or crimping. It also requires the right equipment to test and put into service cables. Technicians must be trained and previously prepared for the installation and commissioning of optical fibers.
· Repairs. An optical fiber cable that has been damaged is not easy to repair. Thus, repair procedures require a team technician with enough skill and ability in handling equipment. In some situations it may be necessary to repair the entire cable. This problem could be even more complex, given the large number of people using this service. Therefore, it is important to design an own system with physically different routes that will address such contingencies.
With all this, you can perform an initial assessment, which highlights the multitude of benefits that fiber has over electric transmission mediums. Despite the drawbacks, most of them are decreasing over time. Being a fairly recent mode of transmission, allows this research are very active. On the other hand, there is an optical fiber support mature enough to serve very high performance.
Advantages and disadvantages of optical fibers
Classical communications systems use electrical signals supported by coaxial cable,
copper, radio channel, etc. depending on the type of application to provide service.
These systems have some drawbacks and limitations that made it necessary to find
other ways to transfer data, based on other signals, such as fiber optics.
The main fact that a fiber use light energy as a transmission medium, it presents an
important set of advantages over other media used in the transmission of analog and
digital signals.
Advantages of optical fibers
The main advantages of optical fiber as transmission medium compared to other systems based on electromagnetic signals over metals are:
· They allow higher throughput. The signals travel throughout optical fiber cables approaching the speed of light (C=3.10 power 8 m/s) while the electrical signals travel through the cables at a speed between 50 - 70% of it, depending on the type of cable.
· Greater transmission capacity. They can be achieved speeds exceeding 2 Gbps, since the transmission rate increases with frequency. The fact to have inherently greater bandwidth enables the simultaneous transmission of large amounts of information. This property is directly related to the previous.
· They have total immunity to electromagnetic interference. Optical fiber does not produce any electromagnetic interference and it is not affected by radiation or nuclear electromagnetic pulses (NEMP) accompanying nuclear explosions.
· It do not exist problems to return to ground, and cross-interference reflection as in electrical transmission lines.
· Attenuation in transmission increases more slowly with distance than in the case of electrical cables, allowing greater distances between signal repeaters.
· It can get bit error rates typical of the order of 10 power 9 compared to rates of the order of 10 power 6 to reach those coaxial cables. This increases the effective speed of data transmission, reducing the number of retransmissions or the amount of redundant information necessary for detect and correct transmission errors.
· They do not have a risk of short circuit or other damage of electrical origin.
· Fiber optic cables, weigh one-tenth of copper shielded cables, for example. This is a very important consideration in military applications, typical of ships and aircraft.
· They usually have a much smaller diameter cable. In addition, they are much more flexible and easier to install than electrical cables.
· The fiber optic cables are suitable for use in a wide range of temperatures, since they support extreme temperatures better than cables with metallic origin.
· Unlike the copper cables, the transmitted signal cannot be drawn from a fiber without tampering it. This way, the optical fiber communication provides 100% signal security.
· It is possible to increase transmission capacity by adding new data channels using different wavelengths to those already employed, by WDM techniques.
· Optical fiber has a higher resistance to environments and corrosive liquids than electric cables.
· Raw materials, which are used in the manufacture of optical fibers, are very abundant, and it is hoped that eventually the manufacturing cost is reduced to a level similar to metallic cables.
· The operational half-life and average time between failures of a fiber optic cable are much higher than an electrical origin cable.
Disadvantages of optical fibers
Optical fiber not only has advantages. It also has some drawbacks, which it is not convenient to forget, because in some circumstances they limit studies and deployment projects in some networks based on this transmission medium:
· The cost, either installation or transmitters and receivers, is usually high compared with other types of communications. In addition, companies do not charge for time used, but the amount of information transferred to the computer that is measured in megabytes.
· Electro-optical conversion. Before connecting an electrical signal tooptical fiber, the signal must be converted to light spectrum (850, 1310 or 1550 nm). This conversion is carried out by an electronic device on the end of the transmitter, which provides an own format to the
communication signal and the signal becomes optics using a LED or a solid state laser.
· Particular installation. Because the fiber is predominantly silica glass, special techniques are needed for engineering and installation of the links. No longer apply conventional methods wire cable installation as, for example, welding or crimping. It also requires the right equipment to test and put into service cables. Technicians must be trained and previously prepared for the installation and commissioning of optical fibers.
· Repairs. An optical fiber cable that has been damaged is not easy to repair. Thus, repair procedures require a team technician with enough skill and ability in handling equipment. In some situations it may be necessary to repair the entire cable. This problem could be even more complex, given the large number of people using this service. Therefore, it is important to design an own system with physically different routes that will address such contingencies.
With all this, you can perform an initial assessment, which highlights the multitude of benefits that fiber has over electric transmission mediums. Despite the drawbacks, most of them are decreasing over time. Being a fairly recent mode of transmission, allows this research are very active. On the other hand, there is an optical fiber support mature enough to serve very high performance.
1 Comments
Technology is growing over the years. Fiber optic communication is the revolution in the telecommunications industry. Traditional transmission methods send signals through metallic-based systems, fiber optic is not electrical in nature. Optical fibers usually have a longer life cycle for over 100 years. Yes initial installation cost can go higher side this is the biggest disadvantages. For affordability you can choose Cayman Islands Internet which provide unparalleled speed.
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