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New technology offers broadband solution

28 October 2009

optical fibres
 

Ground-breaking optical fibre technology developed by Monash researchers could drastically boost the capacity of strained broadband networks and improve download times around the world.

The innovation, pioneered by Professors Arthur Lowery and Jean Armstrong from the Department of Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering in the Faculty of Engineering, is known as optical Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing, or oOFDM.

The technology applies ADSL principles – already used to expand the capacity of data transfer over traditional copper and wireless broadband – to optical fibre cables, potentially increasing their data capacity tenfold.

Professor Lowery said there was an exponential growth in data-intensive internet applications.

"More and more people are accessing broadband internet and using it for data-heavy activities, such as video," he said.

"This poses a major challenge to the existing optical fibre infrastructure unless the capacity or bandwidth on existing fibres can be augmented

"The appeal of oOFDM is that it offers an inexpensive means of dramatically increasing long-haul capacity from the current transmission rate of 10 Gigabits per second to more than 100 Gigabits per second, over new and existing optical fibre."

Professor Lowery said the innovation would allow the world's telecommunications carriers to meet a growing consumer demand for faster download speeds without major cost.

"Standard data transmission is equivalent to transmitting a series of single notes, but oOFDM is more like transmitting the notes grouped together in a chord," he said.

"Since more data is packed into the chord, more information can be sent that is less prone to technical issues, as each signal travels down the optical fibre."

The technology, which is patented by Monash, is being commercialised by Ofidium Pty Ltd. The company is backed by venture capital firm Starfish Ventures and has recently secured an additional $250,000 investment from the Trans Tasman Commercialisation Fund (TTCF) – a new Melbourne-based $30 million seed investment fund.