Image: kkssr (Shutterstock)
There’s nothing more frustrating than a bad internet connection, but researchers out of Aston University may have just solved that problem forever. A new method allowed scientists in the UK to send data 4.5 million times faster than average broadband, setting a new world record.
In
partnership
with
the
National
Institute
of
Information
and
Communications
Technology
in
Japan
and
Nokia
Bell
Labs
in
the
United
States,
Aston
researchers
were
able
to
transfer
data
at
a
rate
of
301,000,000
megabits
per
second
using
standard
optical
fiber.
That’s
compared
to
the
average
UK
broadband
performance
at
69.4
megabits
per
second.
In
the
United
States,
average
download
speeds
are
faster,
averaging
242.4
Mbps,
but
the
breakthrough
is
still
over
a
million
times
faster.
The
feat
was
achieved
by
using
new
wavelength
bands
that
aren’t
used
in
traditional
fiber
optic
systems.
The
new
wavelength
bands
are
equivalent
to
“different
colors
of
light
being
transmitted
down
the
optical
fiber.”
“Broadly
speaking,
data
was
sent
via
an
optical
fiber
like
a
home
or
office
internet
connection,”
said
Aston
researcher
Ian
Phillips
in
a
press
release.
“However,
alongside
the
commercially
available
C
and
L-bands,
we
used
two
additional
spectral
bands
called
E-band
and
S-band.
Such
bands
traditionally
haven’t
been
required
because
the
C-
and
L-bands
could
deliver
the
required
capacity
to
meet
consumer
needs.”
Aston
University
developed
an
optical
amplifier
that
allows
data
wavelengths
to
operate
in
the
E-band,
which
researchers
say
is
about
three
times
wider
than
traditional
wavelengths
used
for
data
transmission.
Before
this
breakthrough,
no
one
was
able
to
emulate
E-band
channels
in
a
controlled
way.
The
solution
is
remarkable
because
it
does
not
require
new
infrastructure
to
drastically
improve
internet
speeds,
and
could
allow
significantly
faster
internet
speeds
through
existing
fiber
cables.
The
breakthrough
could
be
a
revolution
in
internet
speeds
across
the
spectrum
of
users.
If
implemented
widely,
this
new
and
faster
internet
could
help
give
access
to
the
tens
of
millions
of
Americans
who
don’t
have
reliable
internet.
For
average
internet
users,
it
could
make
downloading
movies
and
large
files
near
instantaneous.
For
large
business
and
tech
researchers,
it
could
accelerate
development
speeds
multiple
times
over.
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