Berk-Tek, an Alcatel company, has designed GIGAlite multimode fiber solutions, which meet the requirements of Gigabit Ethernet and Asynchronous Transfer Mode. According to the company, gigalite fiber solutions guarantee that data-communications networks will be capable of running the high-speed applications that will be necessary to support the organizations of the future.
With the ongoing development of the Gigabit Ethernet standard, a number of issues have been raised regarding the capability of the current installed based of multimode fiber. One of the most significant issues is the maximum distance that Gigabit Ethernet can run on standard Fiber Distributed Data Interface grade 62.5/125-micron fibers. The current standards draft limits the maximum distance to 220 meters at 850 nanometers, which does not support many of the intrabuilding and interbuilding backbones in existence. Berk-Tek reports that gigalite extends the maximum distance to at least 500 meters at both 850 and 1300 nm, letting the network manager easily upgrade or immediately use Gigabit Ethernet or other protocols.
The enhanced fibers that make up gigalite were manufactured using Alcatel`s patented process. Available with 62.5/125- and 50/125-micron fiber, the new optical-fiber line provides a significant increase in bandwidth along with superior quality, reliability, and consistency, according to the company.
BERK-TEK
NEW HOLLAND, PA
