Verizon has successfully concluded the industry's first field test of 100 gigabits per second optical transmission, on a live, in-service 312-mile network route between Tampa, Fla., and Miami. The test, which utilized a live video feed from Verizon's national FiOS TV network as the "payload," was successfully completed Friday (Nov. 16). The 100 Gbps transmission was conducted on a Verizon Business ultra long-haul optical system carrying other live traffic at 10 Gbps. The test demonstrated that by deploying advanced electronics, an existing network system can easily and quickly be upgraded to 100 Gbps.

Fred Briggs, executive vice president of network operations and technology for Verizon Business, said, "Applications based on online video are clearly drivers for higher bandwidth, but there are many others from a large-business customer perspective. For example, database applications and file delivery, as well as disaster recovery and business continuity solutions, are also driving our customers' need for capacity.

"This trial proves what we've been saying: The move from 40 Gbps -- available from Verizon Business today -- to 100 Gbps will be exponentially quicker than the move from 10 Gbps to 40 Gbps. As the industry moves toward 100 Gbps, we're leading the way," Briggs said.

Verizon selected Alcatel-Lucent's 1625 LambdaXtreme Transport system for the field trial. Using that equipment, the 100 Gbps transmission was successfully accomplished on existing fibers that were initially conditioned for 10 Gbps service. Unlike other trials that used 10 separate 10 Gbps wavelengths to carry 100 Gbps, the Verizon test utilized a 100 Gbps signal on a single wavelength, demonstrating Verizon's drive to promote "true" 100 Gbps in a serial fashion on just one transmission wavelength.

"This achievement further demonstrates Alcatel-Lucent's commitment to paving the way for new advanced services by taking optical networking to the next level in both distance and capacity," said Michel Rahier, president of Alcatel-Lucent's carrier activities. "The field trial also confirms optical networking's role as a critical enabler for competitive transformation, as new services and applications reshape network requirements."

Briggs added, "Transmission at 100 Gbps will enable low latency and significant improvement in real-time transaction. Trading institutions and other Verizon customers using real-time communications will find the associated performance very attractive."

Like the equipment in the company's 40 Gbps trial in June 2004, the 100 Gbps equipment used in the field trial was implemented with a "plug and play" approach. This is a key objective for future commercial implementation, and means the technology was used without any changes to the fiber, amplifiers and other embedded equipment.