Live 40Gbps fibre trial succeeds

Stephen Withers
Friday, 25 May 2007 08:49

IT Industry - Strategy

Ericsson and Telstra have claimed a world first by boosting the speed of live fibre optic links between two cities from 10Gbps to 40Gbps.

The trial showed that the existing 1200km (750 mile) optical fibre links between Sydney and Melbourne can operate at 40Gbps without major changes.

"This trial was commissioned as a part of Telstra's forward planning to meet expected growth on the inter-capital networks," said Dan Burns, executive managing director, network and technology at Telstra. "It demonstrates the capability of the Telstra Next IP network and effectively positions Telstra at the forefront of industry development to implement high capacity long distance transmission."

Ericsson officials explained that the company's next-generation 40Gbps optical transmission technology uses a new modulation format which is less prone to polarisation mode dispersion, a fibre characteristic which can limit high-speed transmission.

"Ericsson's DWDM solution, Marconi MHL 3000, provides a seamless in-service upgrade of capacity with minimal investment," said Bill Zikou, CEO of Ericsson Australia and New Zealand.

"Enabling 40Gbps connections between Telstra's IP core routers will allow us to expand our network capacity in line with expected growth in IP traffic," added Mr Burns. The network is used to carry voice, data and video.