How WDM Works

Background: The challenge of insufficient fiber resources for existing 4G/5G network construction

In the aftermath of the epidemic, operators around the world have launched a new round of network upgrade plans to expand their existing 3G/4G networks to 4G/5G networks to accommodate new AI, metaverse, big data, and other technologies.
With the traditional fiber optic network and base station construction methods, it is inevitable that they will face a shortage of fiber; at the same time, new fiber optic cables will be more expensive and the erection cycle will be even longer, which obviously cannot meet the urgent needs of customers.

Compared to traditional base station access, 4G/5G network construction increases the consumption of fiber optic resources by 6 to 18 times
Compared to traditional base station access, 4G/5G network construction extends the transmission distance by 1 to 5 times

WDM-OTN (Wavelength Division Multiplexer) network is the most cost-effective and fast-deployed solution for this challenge.

Most Popular WDM Solutions Compare to Direct Connection Solutions

From the other three solutions, we learned that by simply adding WDM equipment at both ends of the transmission, more data from the base station can be transmitted over the original fiber optic cable line.

Scenario 1: Optical Fiber Shortage Between BBU and RRU

By switching to the WDM solution, we save much more cost on the fibers

Scenario 2: Indoor CPE Fiber Shortage

In-building wiring, including 2G/3G/4G RRU, private lines, and in-building monitoring intercom, etc. which occupies a large number of building optical cable shaft pipeline resources, new optical cable is difficult to lay.
The PSBU solution is used to solve the problem of insufficient fiber in the in-building shaft ducts. This approach is also suitable for pulling long-distance coverage from the BBU pool (access room) to several nearby buildings.

Scenario 3: Insufficient Local Relay Fiber

Passive Mux/Demux can also be used when local-office relay cables are in short supply.
All types of business units need to be replaced with color optical modules at the same time, and the Mux/Demux is passive, with stable and reliable performance.

Scenario 4: Insufficient resources for optical

For the current lack of resources from the service convergence point to the optical ODF box, passive WDM devices can be used to improve fiber utilization rates

Key2optics provides total WDM solutions, and we have full product lines, as well as the management platform to keep your OTN 24 hours monitored.