01 Jan 0001
00:00 - 00:00
The exponential rise in global data traffic from cloud computing, IoT, AI, and 5G is straining single‑core optical fiber networks to their physical and economic limits. Multicore fiber (MCF) technology offers a viable path to boost capacity, efficiency, and scalability in the telecom ecosystem. Worldwide field trials have demonstrated MCF’s capabilities, supported by advances in fan‑in/fan‑out devices for backward compatibility, multicore transceivers, connectors, and amplifiers. These developments make MCF attractive for data centers and backbone networks, yet challenges persist. The lack of unified global standards hampers design interoperability and infrastructure integration, while technical hurdles in splicing and fan‑in/fan‑out devices complicate single‑core interconnection. High costs for new components and transitioning from legacy systems further slow adoption. Overcoming these barriers will require coordinated industry action to refine manufacturing, ensure interoperability, and strengthen the business case. This panel convenes experts from industry, academia, and standards bodies to evaluate MCF readiness and chart deployment pathways.
The key questions to address in this panel are:
- Which applications (submarine cables, data centers, metro/backbone) are most ready for MCF adoption?
- How mature are the manufacturing processes for MCFs and related components, and what are the bottlenecks?
- What are the challenges in retrofitting or co-deploying legacy fibers and MCFs?
- What is the business case for MCF versus simply increasing the number of single-core fibers?
- How will MCF adoption reshape the competitive landscape for network operators and vendors?
- What is the current state of global standardization efforts across the product spectrum: fibers, connectors, amplifiers, and measurement equipment?
- How can public-private partnerships, research consortia, and policymakers support the transition?
- What are the next milestones for ecosystem readiness?
- What are the latest results from commercial pilots and large-scale trials/testbeds?
Organizers
-
Andrea D'Amico
NEC Laboratories America Inc., USA
-
Gustavo Ocampo
Hokkaido University, Japan
-
Deepa Venkitesh
Indian Institute of Technology Madras, India
-
Masaki Wada
NTT, Japan