What is 800G?

Coherent optical transmission technology utilizes lasers to enable the transmission of large amounts of information over fiber optic cables. This technology has been commercially available for a bit more than 10 years. In that time, we have seen five distinct generations of technology – the first generation enabled 100 gigabits per second, and the latest or fifth generation enables transmission of up to 800 gigabits per second. That’s the equivalent of downloading about 20 to 30 high-definition movies every second. In addition to increasing the capacity per laser or wavelength, each new generation of this technology has also enabled a substantial increase in the total amount of information that can be transmitted over a single fiber optic cable.

800G technology also provides substantial savings to network operators – saving as much as 30 percent over fourth generation 600G technology and 60 percent over third generation 400G technology.

So, how did this happen? 800G transmission is enabled by three key technological advances. First is the ability to send data or symbols at a faster rate. This is referred to as the baud rate. Second is improvements in advanced modulation techniques including probabilistic constellation shaping and Nyquist digital subcarriers that enable us to send more information with each symbol. Finally, advances in digital signal processing enable us to compensate and overcome transmission impairments found in ultra-high-speed signals like 800G.