46 I ICT TODAY
By G. Mabud Choudhury and John Kamino, RCDD
Whether it is transmission speed, reach or capacity,
enterprise and data center networks have undergone
a remarkable evolution over the past decade. However,
one thing has remained constant: the continued relevance
of multimode optical fiber (MMF) links as the most
cost-effective short-reach solutions on the market.
This article is designed in two parts to provide ICT
designers and installers with the latest knowledge about
MMF. In part one, the technology trends behind MMF's
success story are explored. It explains how cloud and
enterprise data centers continue to drive strong demand
for multimode solutions, even as transmission speeds
increase and singlemode optical fiber (SMF) transceivers
Multimode Fiber Technology,
Latest Market Trends and Standards
move into the 500-meter (m) data center space. Also
described are how the latest data center application areas,
including colocation, edge data centers (EDCs), and
telecom/central office data centers, are providing new
and growing addressable markets for the cost and
power advantages of short-reach MMF links.
Part two provides the most recent standards update
for MMF in the enterprise as a convenient best practices
and standards reference. Combined, these two parts
provide ICT designers and installers with a compre-
hensive over-view of MMF, equipping them to offer
their customers the best this technology has to offer
now and into the future.
