Lucent is touting new fiber-optic technologies it says will increase capacity and better serve unique fiber applications.
First up is all AllWave, a fiber-optic cable that stretches its capacity by digesting a wider portion of the light spectrum. Lucent said AllWave taps a previously unused portion of the light spectrum, bringing 50 percent more of the usable wavelength than current fiber. Combined with a new system for leveraging the extra spectrum, WaveStar All-Metro, the fiber lets city-based service providers carry data on hundreds of wavelengths simultaneously, Lucent said.
This translates into fiber that is better suited to the complex data behavior of busy high-speed metropolitan networks, the company said. These networks offer a raft of services ranging from video to faster telecommunications. For example, phone companies can send data streams longer distances at speeds up to 10 Gbps. Lucent said it is working with customers to determine best uses of the new spectrum and expects to deliver All-Metro systems in the third quarter of 1999.
Meanwhile, Lucent has readied TrueWave RS Fiber, for long-distance applications of the new technology. The trouble with long-distance data transport is that signals tend to disperse, diminishing the overall transmission. The new fiber, which also uses the untapped part of the light spectrum, reduces this "signal spreading."
The company's first TrueWave customer is global telecom company Viatel, which will use the fiber in a European network it is planning for 1999.
