Imagine losing millions as a financial services trader because of a delay of just a few nanoseconds in getting the price of futures in the securities market. This scenario is all too real for financial services firms that rely on ultra-high-speed and extremely low latency networks to execute deals that take advantage of continuously changing differences in prices.

Hollow core fiber is emerging as an ideal solution for use cases that depend on ultra-fast and extremely low-latency communications networks. A key reason is that hollow core fiber can transmit data much faster than traditional fiber. Several service providers, including British Telecom, have conducted trials of hollow core fibers, underscoring its growing importance.

There is a growing interest in low-latency optical communications as the demand for time-sensitive applications continues to increase. “The global next-generation optical fiber market (multicore and hollow core fiber) is projected to reach $1,053.4 million by 2031 from $137.4 million in 2022, growing at a CAGR of 25.4% during the forecast period 2022-2031,” says recent Research and Markets Report.

“Due to high demand from end-user industries and the rising need for high-speed and large-capacity data transmission, the growing adoption of smart electronic devices globally is expected to increase the demand for multicore and hollow core optical fibers, thereby bolstering the global next-generation optical fiber market,” adds the report. In addition, the growing deployment of 5G will help expand the market of next-generation optical solutions like hollow core fibers.

What is Hollow Core Fiber?

Essentially, hollow core fiber is based on the principle that light travels faster through the air than glass. Hollow core fibers are exactly what their name suggests – optical fibers with a hollow centre instead of solid glass. It is for this reason that hollow core fibers have an air-filled centre channel surrounded by a ring of glass tubes, thus ensuring faster transmission.

Using air instead of light for transmission leads to increased bandwidth with significantly reduced loss, leading to higher transmission capacity and an overall improved quality of light transmission. As per some estimates, light travels 50% faster through air-based core than through traditional glass fiber.

While hollow core fiber has been around for several years now, recent advancements have led to an increased interest in the technology. “Our findings show that hollow core fibers have the potential to outperform the current optical fibers at various wavelengths used in optical technology today. Not only do they have lower attenuation, but they can also withstand higher laser intensities, such as those needed to melt rocks and drill oil wells, as well as produce more efficient lasers for manufacturing,” said Professor Poletti from the Southampton University’s Optoelectronics Research Center.

Apart from the finance sector, this technology is indispensable for advanced use cases across various industry verticals such as healthcare, manufacturing, data centres, gaming, retail, and government services, all of which demand extremely low latency. For example, it ensures faster retrieval of large medical files and images, enhancing the sharing of imaging data in the cloud. Additionally, cloud providers collaborating with customers who have stringent latency requirements find immense value in this technology.

Additionally, hollow core fiber enables the expansion of distances between data centers without compromising latency, underscoring its pivotal role in advancing low-latency optical solutions across diverse sectors.

Advantages of Hollow Core Fiber

The critical advantage of hollow core fiber is that it offers lower latency than traditional fibers. This is crucial because several new-age applications and use cases demand extremely low latency. For instance, if deployed between data centers, it will lead to higher throughput and ultra-low latency, enabling service providers to ensure superior customer experience.

Hollow core fiber offers several crucial advantages over traditional fiber:

  • 1. Minimal Signal Loss

    Hollow core fiber comes with lower attenuation than traditional fibers, which means it can be deployed over long distances without using repeaters. Since it is filled with air, there is less light scattering and less crosstalk between channels, leading to superior network performance.

  • 2. Faster Speed and Better Latency

    Hollow core fibers provide improved speeds and latency because light travels faster through the air than through glass. This is extremely relevant as more and more users, especially enterprises, demand faster networks and low latency.

  • 3. Greater Bandwidth

    Network operators have an opportunity to launch more channels because hollow core fiber minimizes chromatic dispersion, allowing more wavelengths to be launched into a single fiber without inter wave mixing.

  • 4. High Power Delivery

    The hollow core reduces nonlinear effects that can distort or damage signals in traditional fibers, enabling the transmission of high-powered lasers without signal degradation. This advancement facilitates more advanced medical procedures and industrial processes.

  • 5. Improved Security:

    The design of Hollow Core Fiber ensures improved security and better detection of any intrusion.

While hollow core fiber offers several benefits, the concept is still in its initial stages and the manufacturing and installation ecosystem will take some time to develop.

In Closing

With the growing demand for extremely low latency transmission in several industry verticals, hollow core fiber deployment is likely to increase over the next few years, representing a significant leap forward in optical communication technology. Key benefits of hollow core fiber, including more capacity, better speeds, and improved latency, provide more capabilities when compared with traditional fiber, leading to an overall enhanced experience for the end user. As research and development continue to refine these fibers, we can expect to see them play a transformative role in shaping the future of high-speed data networks, medical advancements, and countless other cutting-edge fields.

FAQs

Hollow-core fibers offer versatile applications, including high-power laser delivery across broad wavelength ranges and ultrashort pulse transmission. They excel in data transmission scenarios requiring minimal latency and enable low-loss transmission in spectral regions where traditional fibers struggle with absorption losses. Leveraging their larger optical bandwidth, they enhance transmission capacities, facilitating higher data rates. Moreover, they enable the creation of miniature Raman lasers using gases, capitalizing on intensified light interaction within the hollow core. Additionally, various nonlinear functions, previously challenging to achieve, become feasible through gas-filled hollow fibers, expanding their utility across multiple domains.

Within a hollow core optical fiber, light travels roughly 50% faster compared to its speed within the solid silica core of conventional fiber. Consequently, for each kilometre travelled, light reaches its destination approximately 1.54 microseconds earlier than it would through traditional optical fiber. This difference underscores the efficiency and speed advantages offered by hollow-core fiber in data transmission and telecommunications applications.

Hollow core fiber boasts lower latency, reduced signal degradation, and higher transmission capacities due to its unique design, enabling faster data transmission and improved performance in various applications.

Hollow core fiber finds applications in diverse fields such as healthcare, manufacturing, and defence, where low latency and high-speed data transmission are critical for advancing technologies and processes.