The solution brings to offer testing capabilities tailored to the unique optical and physical properties of hollow core fiber closing a growing demand gap
In sum — what to know:
A broad suite: Viavi has dropped a new testing and certification platform for hollow core fiber that leverages several of its proprietary solutions.
Key capabilities: The solution supports bi-directional OTDR, PMD, CD and AP testing of medium and long-range HCF links.
Road to wider adoption: As hollow core fiber continues to gain purchase, bespoke testing solutions like it can close the demand gap by bringing to adopters tools to protect investments.
The momentum around hollow core fiber (HCF) is rapidly building up, and Viavi has been keeping tabs. The test and measurement company this week unveiled an all-in-one test platform — ostensibly the first of its kind — for testing and certification of medium to long-range hollow core fiber links.
Key capabilities
Viavi’s test solution is designed to enable adopters analyze and measure their HCF deployments. The solution, according to Viavi, has cleared several trials with fiber manufacturers, contractors, and three leading hyperscalers.
“Viavi’s all-in-one offering has delivered strong results over short-, mid- and long-distance links in trials we’ve held in collaboration with leading fiber manufacturers and hyperscalers, allowing them to protect these larger investments in HCF and ensure future ROI,” Kevin Oliver, VP and GM of Fiber and Access Solutions said in a statement.
Researchers at the University of Southampton in England designed HCF as an alternative to standard fiber. A new kind of fiber-optic cable with a hollowed out core, HCF increases bandwidth by over three times compared to conventional fiber. The specialized core of the fiber reduces signal loss by cutting down distortion, delay, and power loss, resulting in faster propagation speeds.
But because of its delicate and distinct physical and optical properties, hollow core fiber comes with a specific set of testing needs that traditional fiber test processes cannot meet. For example, HCF exhibits irregular backscattering owing to its microstructural variations which make optical time domain reflectometer (OTDR) interpretations unreliable. Fiber alignment and cleanliness requirements for HCF are also highly complex, making it prone to splice loss.
Viavi’s new platform leverages Viavi’s proprietary technologies: the 8100 Series OTDR modules and ReportPRO software for their HCF-specific algorithms. The solution supports bidirectional OTDR analysis, meaning engineers can take OTDR measurements from both ends of the fiber, resulting in greater accuracy.
Additionally, testing capabilities including chromatic dispersion, polarization mode dispersion, and attenuation allow verification of installation and monitoring of fibers at various wavelengths.
Is HCF the fiber of the future?
With 7 billion kilometers of fiber route deployed globally, today optical fiber serves as the main medium for the internet, mobile and fixed access networks, and other key communication networks. But the bandwidth-heavy needs of AI data centers need more than just the couple hundred terabits of speed per second provided by fiber-optic cables.
“Fiber is really good,” Andrew Lord, R&D lead at British Telecom noted during the keynote at the Optical Fiber Communication (OFC) Conference last year. “But maybe since 1982, it’s time to start to refresh that infrastructure,” he said.
Operators and hyperscalers have taken a deep interest in speciality fiber innovations in the wake of AI. With big players like Microsoft and Nokia at the helm, HCF uptake has so far been driven by early adopters like British Telecom, Comcast, AWS, and euNetworks — and various research groups. And now it’s entering the next phase of adoption.
Conclusion
The market is bullish on hollow core fiber. Companies see it as a vehicle for blur-fast data transmission specific to AI and experts have come up with new opportunities of implementation ranging from upgrading Radio Access Network (RAN) to replacing subsea cables. But as Lord noted in his talk, as groundbreaking as it is, HCF is likely not going to drive a “wholesale replacement” of the worldwide fiber deployment. It is very expensive to manufacture and install at optical fiber scale, and therefore must be earmarked only for applications that traditional fiber cannot support.
But at this time, the market needs more bespoke testing solutions that can keep pace with development and offer meticulous, nuanced, and reliable measurements to support investment and ensure ROI.
