We’ve said it until we’re blue in the face: the number of people online keeps growing, the demand for faster connections never stops, and the existing infrastructure is already under enormous strain. The 5G situation is still complicated, but the truth is that plenty of people out there are looking for ways to improve our connectivity. The latest news comes from a team at Brown University, which has achieved the first multiplexed transmission using terahertz waves. Their demo hit 50 gigabits per second, and honestly, we can’t wait.
The Gigabit Dream Still Seems a Long Way Off
The famous “gigabit link” remains a dream for most of us. I imagine that sooner or later we’ll all reach that speed, but it won’t be easy. When Google Fiber announced an indefinite pause in the rollout of its fiber network and laid off employees, our hopes shattered like tempered glass. Alphabet’s goal is to eliminate the “Fiber” factor from the equation, which means accelerating the adoption of wireless technology. Given the current state of networks, it’s clear we’ll need something completely new… and soon. Fortunately, the work has already begun.
The Terahertz Multiplexing Breakthrough
A group of researchers at Brown University announced last week the first multiplexed data transmission carried on terahertz waves. Briefly, multiplexing enables the simultaneous transmission of multiple channels over a single medium, and creating a viable method for applying it to terahertz waves is critical if we want to take advantage of those extremely high frequencies. According to Professor Daniel Mittleman, he and his team managed to transmit two real-time video signals at a combined speed of 50 gigabits per second (25 Gbps per channel), with an acceptable error rate.
Now, how did they do it? In simple terms, their multiplexing and demultiplexing process (“mux-demux”) uses two plates installed in parallel, acting as a waveguide. One of the plates has a small slit, and when terahertz waves travel through the guide, part of the radiation leaks through that slit. The angle at which the rays escape depends on the wave’s frequency. If you place multiple waves at different frequencies (avoiding interference) in the same guide, but each frequency escapes through the slit at a different angle separating the data stream, the mux-demux is complete. There are still many aspects of the technology to refine, and we shouldn’t forget the nightmare of regulation, but we’re glad to see projects heading in the right direction.
