Sterlite Technologies develops world’s slimmest 160-micron fibre

Pune-based Sterlite Technologies Ltd (STL), an optical and digital solutions company, has developed a 160-micron optical fibre, which it claims to be the world’s slimmest fibre for telecommunication. This innovation has been conceptualised and developed indigenously at STL’s Centre of Excellence in Maharashtra, making it the first company globally to develop and patent this technology. 

The optical fibre was unveiled at the 7th edition of India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2023 by Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union Minister for Communications, Electronics & Information Technology & Railways. After unveiling the 160-micron fibre, he ‘spliced’ or ‘joined’ two strands of optical fibre - a highly calibrated process of perfectly connecting the cores of two hair-thin optical fibres.

Cable made with this 160-micron fibre can pack 3X more capacity than traditional 250-micron fibre. STL said that by packing more capacity in limited duct space with a reduced diameter cable of 6.4mm (~32% reduction compared to 250-micron fibre), the 160-micron fibre will revolutionise deployment, bandwidth capacity and green quotient of the networks. 

This product meets telecom-grade optical performance standards and complies with the ITU G.657A2 standard. This announcement comes after a series of innovations by our R&D experts, including India’s first multicore fibre with 4X capacity and 180-micron fibre.

Dr Badri Gomatam, Group CTO, STL, said: "Through highly calibrated process and material engineering, we have achieved a breakthrough in manufacturing processes and glass compositions to realise micro bend insensitivity.”

The new fibre can play a critical role in India’s broadband landscape as well. As India becomes the fastest-growing digital economy in the world, there's a need for densely fiberised networks, both in backhaul and closer to customers. 

Laying ducts account for ~60% of the entire fibre deployment cost, making duct space a precious asset. Network builders all over the globe are in a continued quest to reduce fibre size to pack in more and more capacity in the available duct space.

For example, in a large-scale project like Bharatnet, where India needs to deploy ~20 Million fibre km cable by 2025, using 160-micron fibre instead of the standard 250-micron fibre can potentially reduce the deployment time by ~15%. This enables the use of ducts with a smaller diameter, thereby reducing the plastic footprint in the ground by ~30%.

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