View of China's State Key Laboratory of Optical Communication Technologies and Networks under China Information and Communication Technologies Group Corp (CICT) Photo: CICT

China's State Key Laboratory of Optical Communication Technologies and Networks under China Information and Communication Technologies Group Corp (CICT), in cooperation with Pengcheng Laboratory and Fiberhome Fujikura Optic Technology Co, has achieved real-time 2.5 petabits per second (Pb/s) bidirectional transmission over 24-core single-mode fiber, marking a key breakthrough in ultra-large capacity, ultra-high-speed and ultra-long-distance optical transmission, CICT told the Global Times on Wednesday.

What does 2.5 Pb/s mean? Simply put, it is equivalent to transmitting 290,000 gigabytes (GB) of data per second. In other words, it could download 14,000 20GB 4K movies in one second, according to CICT.

"This speed, to put it simply, boosts information transmission capacity by an order of magnitude," Yang Chao, a research fellow from the team, told the Global Times on Wednesday. "In the past, we were building highways, but now, it's more like constructing a three-dimensional transportation network," he added.

In Yang's view, the most fundamental change in this breakthrough isn't about being "faster," but about having "more lanes that can operate simultaneously." He explained that traditional fiber optics are like a single lane; no matter how much researchers speed it up, there's a limit. But with 24-core fiber, it is equivalent to having 24 channels in a single fiber, he said.

As a core enterprise in China's optical communication field, CICT has long been engaged in the research and development (R&D) of optical transmission technologies featuring "ultra-large capacity, ultra-high-speed, and ultra-long distance," continuously promoting independent innovation of core technologies in the country, CICT noted.

This technological breakthrough fully validates the feasibility and engineering potential of space-division multiplexing and multi-band technologies in ultra-large-capacity optical communications, providing a new pathway for the R&D of next-generation optical communication systems, according to the company.

This technological breakthrough comes as traditional single-mode fiber optic transmission systems are gradually approaching their capacity limits amid the rapid development of AI, large-language model computing, and data centers.

"The breakthrough further consolidates China's leading international position in the field of optical communications and will promote the upgrading and development of the optical communication industry," Xiang Ligang, director-general of the Zhongguancun Modern Information Consumer Application Industry Technology Alliance, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

The breakthrough can provide high-speed and stable optical communication support for the development of mobile communications as well as emerging technologies such as AI, cloud computing, and big data, helping drive the rapid development of highly digitalized economy. For example, smoother 8K live streaming and more real-time AI interactions will all benefit from this technological breakthrough, Xiang said.