Optical fiber has many advantages over copper wire and coaxial cable. Because of its good tensile strength, low quality, and relatively small size, the optical cable can maximize the utilization rate of wiring ducts and minimize installation problems. This is why telephone companies like to use fiber optics. Many existing cable ducts have been completely filled, and it is impossible to add new cables. Replacing all cables with optical fibers can save a lot of space, and copper material manufacturers increase the price a lot when manufacturing copper wires. Optical fiber is much lighter than copper wire. 1,000 1km-long twisted pairs weigh up to 8,000kg, while two 1km-long optical fibers with a larger capacity weigh only 100kg, which greatly reduces the costly mechanical support system that must be maintained. Needs. For new lines, optical fiber is better than copper wire because of low installation costs.
Because optical fibers are not charged, they are ideal for use in hazardous environments such as flammable and explosive. In this environment, if copper wires are used, sparks from the gap when the copper wires are broken will cause an explosion. happened. Moreover, if the optical fiber is damaged, there will be no danger of electric shock to humans. In addition, unlike the traditional copper and aluminum wires used for structural wiring installation, the glass fiber is a corrosion-resistant material.
Especially in terms of signal transmission, optical cables have unmatched advantages over traditional cables. Because optical fibers are not affected by the interference of electromagnetic fields, optical fibers provide clearer signals than copper wires. The optical fiber will not be affected by engine rotation or power failure. Moreover, the signal attenuation in the optical fiber is small, and a repeater is needed every 30km on a long line, and a repeater is needed every 5km on a copper wire, which makes the optical fiber save a lot of money. In addition, the optical cable can be used continuously for a length of 550 meters (1800 feet).
Optical fiber technology provides unparalleled flexibility and scalability to meet future needs. Optical fiber can provide much higher bandwidth than copper wire, which makes it used in advanced networks. Data transmission rates of more than 10Gbps have been achieved, which makes optical fiber an ideal basic fiber optic cable technology for tomorrow's broadband network.
Finally, the optical fiber does not leak light and is difficult to splice, so the optical fiber network is difficult to be intercepted by the network, and the safety factor is high.
The reason why optical fiber is better than copper wire is due to the different internal physical structure. When electrons move along the copper wire, they affect each other and are also affected by the electrons outside the copper wire. However, not only do the photons in the fiber do not affect each other (no charge and discharge), but they are also not affected by photons outside the fiber.
It is precisely because of the many advantages of optical fiber that wide-band optical fibers have gradually replaced narrow-band metal cables since the 1980s. However, the optical fiber itself also has shortcomings, such as brittle texture and low mechanical strength are its Achilles heel. If you don't pay attention, it will break in the fiber optic cable sheath. The construction personnel must have better cutting, connecting, branching and coupling techniques. However, with the continuous development of technology, these problems can be overcome.
