Unit 4 Assignment 1 Copper vs. Fiber

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Copper vs. Fiber The advantage of having fiber is obviously going to overcome the advantage of having copper. However, there are certain areas where copper will be better fit than fiber cables. Hard to believe but let’s just point out some advantages and disadvantages of each to see which will best fit where you want to put it. Fiber cabling is growing very fast due to how much more efficient it is than copper cabling. Fiber, for one, has a greater bandwidth. Single mode cables offer the most bandwidth but you have the option of the single mode, 62.5 or 50 micron multimode cables. In addition to that, fiber can carry more information than the copper. Fiber can also carry over a longer distance with low attenuation. They can range from 300 meters to 40 kilometers. Fiber cables also give more security; it doesn’t radiate signals and is very hard to tap. A couple of disadvantages would be the cost of the fiber optic wire and the weight. One of the biggest disadvantages is not being able to make connections as easy as the copper. Fiber optic cables have a core as fine as a human hair, making it extremely difficult to splice. Copper cables are obviously not going to be around forever with the fiber optics being so futuristic, but they still have advantages over the fiber. Copper is very easy to work with. When making connections it is so much easier to splice the copper cable than it would be for the fiber. Copper cables are also very flexible; you can have your wire go wherever without cracking or breaking. As for the disadvantages, all the advantages of the fiber are the downfall of the copper cabling. People want faster, better, farther. So, over time, we will lose the copper cables and move onto the

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