Telstra achieves world first speeds and distances over an optical network

Telstra has announced a world-first milestone in an optical data transmission trial. The company achieved 1.6 Tbps through a single optical channel over 700 km with Ericsson using Ciena’s WaveLogic 6 Extreme (WL6e) coherent optics* solution. This trial is over 200 km longer than the previous record for highest capacity on a single wavelength.

This industry-first achievement was made possible with Ciena’s WL6e, which leverages 3 nm silicon technology and doubled Telstra’s existing fibre wavelength capacity from 800 Gbps to 1.6 Tbps. With WL6e, Telstra will enhance its service offering to support 800G connectivity across long haul infrastructure, including integrating it as part of the Telstra InfraCo intercity fibre network.

“This critical technology will allow us to further future proof our networks by investing in technology to benefit our customers and enabling us to keep up with the data demands of Australians,” said Sanjay Nayak, Telstra Fixed Engineering Executive.

“To put this trial into perspective 1.6 Tbps of bandwidth through a single wavelength is the same bandwidth as over 300,000 Netflix HDs streams going at the same time. Or you can download 17 PB in a day which is more than 5 billion songs or over 12 billion photos. It is a 100% increase per channel capacity and a 14.3% increase in capacity per system,” said Nayak.

Matt Vesperman, Regional MD, Ciena Asia Pacific said, “This successful milestone with Telstra and Ericsson, transmitting more data, faster than ever, over a greater distance, is a strong indicator of our ability to significantly improve network performance efficiency and scale. Once fully deployed, WaveLogic 6 Extreme will help put Telstra at the forefront of bringing a more connected future to Australians and its customers globally.”

Emilio Romeo, Head of Ericsson Australia and New Zealand said: "This achievement with Telstra and Ciena is a testament to the power of collaboration and innovation in optical networking technology. By leveraging Ciena’s advanced 3 nm chipset technology, we've successfully doubled the capacity of Telstra’s wavelengths, paving the way for more robust, high-capacity networks to support the ever-growing data demands. This milestone is not only a significant step forward for Telstra but also a glimpse into the future of telecommunications globally, as we continue to push the boundaries of what's possible in network performance and scalability."

The trial was conducted alongside live traffic services across the central Telstra InfraCo fibre route between the Lonsdale Exchange in Victoria, Melbourne and Barton Exchange in the ACT, Canberra, one of the highest-capacity routes in Australia.

*Coherent optics is a way to increase the volume of data carried over optical fibre.