Benefits and Problems

of Fiber Optics as a Communications Medium

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This page gives some of the reasons for and against installing fiber optics

Advantages:

• High speed - Technology based on fiber optics allows from 51.84 Mbps (OC-1) to 2.5 Gbps (OC-48) per lightwave and up to 40 lightwaves in each strand of fiber (totaling up to 100 Gbps).
• Lighter and more flexible - Optical fiber is lighter in weight, has a better turning radius, and is able to tolerate higher pulling force than copper cable (Optical fiber can withstand tensile stress up to 100 thousand pounds per square inch).
• Installation cost
• Doesn't leak- Because glass fibers do not radiate electrical energy and cannot be easily monitored from the outside, wire tapping and electronic surveillance is difficult.
• Electrical isolation - Optical fiber doesn't conduct electricity so it is excellent in areas where interference from electric motors, power cables, lightening, and ground loops are of concern. In addition, it does not cause an electromagnetic noise that might interfere with other equipment.
• Adaptable - Most of the advances in fiber-optic communication are being made in areas that do not require digging up the fiber in order to upgrade (such as multiplexing the signal or using better connectors). Recent estimates are that only about 1-2% of the cable is currently being used by the signals.

Disadvantages:

• Technical skill - Fiber optic cabling is still a relatively new field so finding engineers who are up to date on keeping a fiber optic network going may be difficult and expensive.
• Installation cost

Both:
Installation Cost

Installation of fiber has become less costly over the years as more and more companies demand fiber and the supply end responds. Recently, for large networks, the price of fiber cabling itself has dropped below the price of category 3 and category 5 copper cable. Single-mode fiber is still expensive to install and use, though, as it requires a semiconductor laser instead of a LED.

Last Modified: 3/15/00
By Brian Patterson and Erin Quealy