Полная история и будущие перспективы волоконно-оптической связи

1、 The complete development process of optical fiber

Theoretical budding stage (1841-1965)

In 1841, scientists verified total reflection of light through water flow experiments, laying the physical foundation for fiber optic transmission; In 1880, Bell invented the optical telephone, proving that light can transmit voice information; In the 1950s, double-layer glass fiber was born to solve the problem of optical signal leakage; In 1960, lasers were introduced to fill the gap in optical communication light sources.
At this stage, the fiber loss can reach thousands of dB/km and is only used for medical endoscopes, making long-distance communication impossible.

Theoretical Foundations and Commercial Beginnings (1966-1977)

In 1966, “Father of Fiber Optics” Gao Kun published a paper proposing that ultra-high purity quartz glass could achieve long-distance optical communication. In 1970, Corning produced the first low loss commercial optical fiber, and in 1977, the United States opened the world’s first commercial optical fiber line.
Subsequently, EDFA fiber amplifiers and WDM wavelength division multiplexing technologies were successively implemented, significantly increasing the bandwidth of fiber optic communication.

China’s fiber optic popularization stage (2010-2024)

FTTB fiber to the building popularization in 2010; In 2015, GPON FTTH fiber to the home was widely implemented; The popularization of 10GPON FTTR fiber to the room in 2020; By 2024, the home broadband speed will exceed 2000M.
In 2023, China’s fiber optic cable production will reach 323 million core kilometers, with a total length of 65.58 million kilometers, and the world’s largest fiber optic network will be built.

New fiber optic technology iteration (2020 present)

New technologies such as multi-core fiber, hollow fiber, and photonic crystal fiber continue to be implemented. By 2025, China will open its own commercial air core fiber optic transmission lines, and overseas efforts will continue to optimize the transmission performance of air core fiber optic cables; G. 654. E ultra-low loss fiber and air division multiplexing fiber are gradually being put into use in trunk and computing scenarios.

2、 Fiber optic structure and basic classification

Fiber optics rely on internal fiber cores to transmit optical signals, which can be divided into two categories:
Single mode fiber: specification 9/125, transmitting 1550nm long wavelength laser, low loss over long distances, model OS2/G.652. D/G.654. E;
Multimode fiber: specifications 50/125, 62.5/125, transmitting 850nm short wavelength laser, used in short-range computer rooms, divided into OM2/OM3/OM4/OM5.
Special optical fibers include ultra-low loss optical fibers, hollow core optical fibers, armored protective optical fibers, etc.

3、 Current market application status

Fiber optic is the core transmission medium for broadband, 5G, cable television, “East Digital West Computing”, and computing power centers. Domestic leading enterprises such as Changfei, Hengtong and Fiberhome have mastered high-end optical fiber mass production technology, exported their products overseas, and built factories in many countries along the the Belt and Road.

Application scenarios cover FTTH in residential areas, computer room cabling, submarine trunk lines, and industrial sensing; Hollow fiber is used for financial low latency dedicated lines, while multi-core fiber is used for ultra large capacity submarine cables. In 2026, the demand for AI computing power will increase the demand for single-mode fiber, and global fiber production capacity will continue to be tight.

4、 The relationship between the future development of optical fiber and AI

AI drives fiber hardware upgrade

The massive data transmission of AI big models is driving the large-scale adoption of OS2 single-mode fiber instead of traditional multi-mode in computer rooms; Ultra low latency hollow core optical fiber is used for AI training and quantitative financial dedicated lines; Multi core, three band optical fibers carry ultra large computing power and traffic across cities. At the same time, CPO and silicon-based high-speed optical modules have driven a surge in demand for high-density MPO and LC single-mode jumpers, and fire-resistant armored special optical fibers have become standard equipment in computing power rooms.

AI feeds back the entire fiber optic industry chain

AI machine vision is used for automated quality inspection of fiber optic jumper end faces and losses; Intelligent algorithms monitor fiber optic faults in real-time across the entire network, predicting hidden damages such as micro bending and compression; AI simulation of fiber core structure significantly shortens the research and development cycle of hollow core and ultra-low loss new optical fibers.

Long term development trend

AI computing infrastructure is the core growth driver of the fiber optic industry, and in the future, fiber optic will iterate towards low latency, large capacity, and high density; The construction of new data centers in overseas countries continues to drive the demand for single-mode fiber optic foreign trade, and fiber optic will serve as the underlying transmission base for artificial intelligence computing power networks for a long time.