14 DAY TRIAL // AT&T has publicly announced the positive results of a live network environment field trial of 100 Gb backbone network technology. This trial will speed up the development of future backbone technology capable of supporting massive increases in wired Internet and wireless data volumes estimated for the following years.
The field trial conducted by AT&T also included the test of the new Cisco CRS-3 Carrier Routing System, on a standard, single-flow, 100 Gb technology trial in a live environment. This test was performed using the K2 100 Gb traffic generator and analyzer from Ixia and the Opnext 100 Gb CFP client slide modules.
According to the wireless carrier, the trial was also meant to showcase a single-carrier 100-Gigabit transmission with real-time coherent processing performed on a 900-kilometer transport link. AT&T notes that the long-haul transport link was rolled out between Louisiana and Florida, and that the deployment was made through the use of Opnext optical equipment.
Some of the achievements obtained through this successful 100 Gb field trial include: - Successful single-carrier 100-Gigabit transmission with real-time coherent processing. - Demonstration of 100-Gigabit Ethernet single-flow router capacity. - Field demonstration of 100-Gigabit technology with a standards-compliant 100GBASE-LR4 single-mode MSA interface. - Field demonstration of a 100-Gigabit traffic generator.
“This successful field trial is a key milestone in our ongoing effort to deliver the industry’s most advanced and capable IP backbone network,” said John Donovan, AT&T’s Chief Technology Officer. “The AT&T IP backbone network today carries nearly 19 petabytes of traffic on an average business day, supporting our wireless, wired and enterprise customers’ ever-growing demand for wireless and wired broadband applications. Research and development milestones like our 100-Gigabit trials help to ensure that the AT&T network is always ready to meet our customers’ needs.”
This consolidates AT&T's position as one of the world's top wireless carriers. In 2008, it managed to complete the largest deployment at that time, a 40 Gb network technology in its IP backbone network in United States. During 2008 and 2009, the company conducted teams that performed two lab trials of 100 Gb technology, setting the new record in bandwidth transmission. This 100 Gb technology is expected to be launched on the market in the next few years.