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Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Back issues
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New Receiver Could Make Broadband 30 Times Faster

New developments in receiver technology means faster internet in the United Kingdom, according to a study by researchers at University College London.

(CN) – New developments in receiver technology means faster internet in the United Kingdom, according to a study by researchers at University College London.

In a study published Thursday in the journal Nature Communications, the researchers describe new simplified receiver technology that allows ultra-fast, low-cost broadband internet connections.

This means internet “peak hours” would not actually slow down home service, thanks to a simpler and cheaper technology linking subscribers to service providers.

Researchers from the University College London’s Optical Networks Group and the University of Cambridge developed the new receiver, which can be used in optical access networks.

Those networks connect internet subscribers to service providers, and the new technology allows dedicated data rates of more than 100,000 megabits per second.

"U.K. broadband speeds are woefully slow compared to many other countries, but this is not a technical limitation,” said lead researcher Mustafa Sezer Erkılınç.

Although 300 Mb/s may be available to some, average U.K. speeds are currently 36 Mb/s. By 2025, average speeds over 100 times faster will be required to meet increased demands for bandwidth-hungry applications such as ultra-high definition video, online gaming, and the Internet of Things."

Researchers said using the technology, their team was able to download and upload at 10 gigabits a second, which is more than 30 times faster than the fastest broadband internet currently available in Britain.

"This simple receiver offers users a dedicated wavelength, so user speeds stay constant no matter how many users are online at once. It can co-exist with the current network infrastructure, potentially quadrupling the number of users that can be supported and doubling the network's transmission distance/coverage," Erkılınç said.

The researchers used a coding technique originally designed to prevent wireless signals from fading, and it uses the same optical fiber for uploading and downloading data.

“Ideally, we'd dedicate a wavelength to each subscriber to avoid the bandwidth sharing between the users,” co-author Polina Bayvel said. “Although this is already possible using highly sensitive hardware known as coherent receivers, they are costly and only financially viable in core networks that link countries and cities.”

In related news, the British government announced changes to its Electronic Communications Code on Thursday that aim to provide better internet connections in rural areas.

All mobile operators will be required to deliver coverage to 90 percent of the U.K. by the end of the year. The draft regulations in Parliament also aim to reduce rents that telecommunication operators pay to landowners to install equipment.

Categories / Technology

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