Garth Naar - A Complete Guide to Fiber Optic Internet

Fiber optic Internet is the future of broadband. It uses fiber-optic technology to reach the
fastest speeds available today, as fast as 10000 Mbps (1Gpbs). Broadband is essential to the
modern world we live in. Powered by fiber optic technology, fiber Internet is blowing its
competitors out of the water. In this guide, we will cover everything you need to know
about fiber Internet, including how it works and the challenges associated with it.

How Fiber Optics Work

When we refer to “fiber” in this guide we are talking about fiber optic Internet, which is a
form of fiber-optic communications. By sending a beam of light through fiber optic glass
cables, we are able to transfer information through what is a truly fascinating process.

Optical Fibers

Fiber cables are made up of many smaller optical fibers. These fibers are extremely thin, to
be specific they are less than a tenth as thick as a human hair. Though they are thin, they
have a lot going on. Each optical fiber has two parts:

The Core: Usually made of glass, the core is the innermost part of the fiber, where the light
passes through.

The Cladding: Usually made of a thicker layer of plastic or glass, the cladding is wrapped
around the core.

These two parts work together to create a phenomenon called total internal reflection.
Total internal reflection is how light is able to move down the fibers, without escaping. It is
when the light hits the glass at an extremely shallow angle, less than 42 degrees, and
reflects back again as if reflecting against a mirror. The cladding keeps the light in the core
because the glass/plastic it is made of has a different optical density or lower refractive
index. Both these terms refer to how the glass bends (refraction)and therefore slows down
the light.

Light is transmitted down the fiber in LED or Laser pulses that travel extremely fast. These
pulses carry binary data, which is a coding system that makes up everything we see on the
Internet, even the words you are reading right now. Binary code is made up of bits, which
are just ones and zeroes. These bits send messages in organized eight-part patterns, called
bytes. It is easy to translate the bits of binary into light pulses. One pulse means one and no
pulse means zero. These pulses can travel sixty miles before they experience any
degradation. To transport data across thousands of miles these pulses go through optical
amplifiers that boost their signal so that no data is lost.
The Last Mile

Once the pulses reach their destination, an optical network terminal (ONT) converts the
light pulses into electrical Ethernet. This is how light becomes something you can use to
actually connect your devices to the Internet. This conversion happens at the end of the Last
Mile, which isn’t actually a mile at all, but a term for the last stretch of fiber that connects
the consumer to the backbone of the Internet.

The backbone of the Internet is what makes it possible for people across the globe to
connect via the web, and most of it is made of fiber optic cables. Fiber optic Internet may
seem like brand new technology, but it has actually been around since the early days of the
Internet. In 1988 fiber optic cables were laid under the ocean to connect the U.S. and
Europe. They were the first submarine lines to be laid, and today they have expanded to
crisscross the entirety of the ocean floor.

Fiber Competitors

Fibers biggest Internet competitors are DSL, Cable and Wireless Internet. DSL Internet is
provided by copper phone lines that have been the norm for over a hundred years. Cable
internet also uses copper, but unlike DSL it uses coaxial cables were originally used for cable
TV services. Fixed Wireless Internet, like cell phone service, is provided through radio waves
broadcasted from towers, and then sent over frequencies.
DSL Pros

Low Fiscal and Environmental Costs: DSL does the least amount of damage, both
environmentally and economically. Copper cables can usually be found even in the most
rural of areas because it was originally laid for telephone connections. The cables can be
reutilized, so new building projects are not necessary. Fiber optic infrastructure or wireless
towers can be expensive, and come at the added price of natural habitats, not to mention
added Co2 emissions. On the other hand, fiber infrastructure doesn’t require electricity,
which is very eco-friendly. Of all the competitors, cable produces the least data for the most
electricity.

Availability: Again, copper cables have already been laid in most areas for telephone use so,
as long as they are in good condition, reusing them to create Internet service is fairly simple.
At this time, fiber optic Internet isn’t available in many rural areas, but bringing faster and
more reliable Internet to rural America is becoming a growing priority for both
municipalities and providers.

DSL Cons

Interference: Copper wires can do serious damage if not properly installed and maintained.
They can release electromagnetic currents that interfere with wires and severely damage a
network. Fiber cables will neither emit electromagnetic waves nor be damaged by them.
They are made from plastic and/or glass, therefore are unaffected by the harmful waves.
Copper cables also conduct electricity, so they pose a fire risk if not properly installed and
maintained. This fact also means they are more susceptible to lightning and can be very
dangerous if they go down during a storm.

Attenuation: Attenuation, means the weakening or loss of a signal. Given distance signals
sent over copper wires degrade much faster than fiber. After 320 ft. of cable, fiber loses
only three percent of its signal, whereas DSL/Cable lose 94% at the same distance.

Cable Pros

Price: Cable Internet is one of the most affordable Internet options. Unfortunately, you get
what you pay for, since their speeds aren’t as fast as wireless or fiber, and often include
data caps.

Cable Cons

Sharing is Not Caring: Cable can reach download speeds of 100 Mbps (still only a tenth of
fiber but more than DSL), but cable Internet is shared from a central node where the ISP
meets the local coaxial network. This means anywhere between 100-2000 homes have to
share a single node. Sharing like this often leads to low speeds during peak use hours.
To manage this, companies have been throttling users Internet, meaning they slow down
your bandwidth after you have used a certain amount. The idea behind this is to give
everyone sharing the node an even amount of service, but can often be frustrating for
consumers. Cable companies have also been known to put caps on how much data your
household needs, and then charge you extra for additional data.

Fixed Wireless Pros

It’s Wireless: As a testament to its name, fixed wireless truly is wire free. Once a tower goes
up, radio waves transmit a carrier’s signal across frequencies. This wireless means fewer
materials are needed, bringing down the overall cost of purchasing, building, and
maintaining. It also means no fallen cables resulting in loss of service.

Access: There are many areas so rural that providers can’t justify the expense to lay fiber, or
build DSL to them. If you live up a mountain, have very few neighbors, or are so far off the
beaten path your mail comes by carrier pigeon, Wireless maybe your only option. Usually,
even the most rural areas will have some sort of tower near enough to gage a signal.

Fixed Wireless Cons

Line of Sight: With fixed wireless, the biggest limitation is that the consumer’s antenna has
to be within the line of sight of the provider’s wireless tower. If a line of sight can’t be
established, like if you live in a hilly area, wireless won’t be an option for you.
Congestion: Fixed wireless has the potential to meet fiber optic Internet speeds, but
circumstances prevent the radio waves from ever catching up to the photons</strong>. You
already know that Wireless degrades with distance, bringing the speed down with it, but
there is a greater issue at hand. As with a cable connection, fixed wireless users share
bandwidth across their local network, so when many people are accessing the network at
once, the speed slows. To put this in perspective, let’s say you are paying for a 100 Mbps
network, but your share that network with all ten homes in your neighborhood. If everyone
is on at once, you are getting 10 Mbps at best. Whereas if you are paying for a 100 Mbps
network of fiber, that speed is just for your home alone.

Societal Benefits

E-Government & Civic Participation: What makes government work as it should is

transparency and public engagement. Access to reliable, high-speed Internet allows live
streaming of municipal, state and federal proceedings – either in real time or more
importantly on demand. Government websites and social media provide a continuous
stream of information to the public as well as forums for public participation. Citizens can
pay taxes online, register vehicles, procure hunting, fishing, and pet licenses, and with the
click of a button, communicate via email with elected officials and staff. Many government
entities have employed a messaging system that allows citizens to use any smart device to
alert officials about everything from dangerous potholes to emergency situations they might
witness.

The plan lists 4 major benefits of the broadband internet:

Allow first-responders anywhere in the nation to send and receive critical voice, video, and
data to save lives, reduce injuries and prevent acts of crime and terror

Ensure all Americans can access emergency services quickly and send and receive vital
information, regardless of how it is transmitted

Revolutionize the way Americans are notified about emergencies and disasters so they
receive information vital to their safety

Reduce threats to e-commerce and other Internet-based applications by ensuring the

security of the nation’s broadband networks

Energy and Environment: Transportation and power generation are 2 of the biggest impacts
on global warming. Both Smart Grid technology for electricity generation and distribution
and metering, and improved transportation management can develop efficiencies that will
greatly reduce emissions and ultimately the carbon footprint. Hi-speed fiber internet
connectivity is integral in both cases.