Fiber Optic vs Copper - (Why Fiber is Faster )
Channel: NM Cabling Solutions
Date: 2021-01-13

Fiber Optic Cable vs Copper Data Cabling. Which is faster Copper or Fibre Optic
Copper cables have in many cases the same capabilities of transmission speeds as fibre cables. However Fibre Optic cables have the added advantage of transmitting those speeds over greater distances.
Fibre vs Copper
The comparison between copper cable and fiber optic ethernet cable when transmitting 10 gig highlights the difference. Copper data cables are generally standardised at 90 / 100m cable links. However in some cases speeds are achievable on a lesser category of cable over a shorter distance so as in the case below for 10 gig over Cat6
Copper Cabling 10 Gigabit Distances
Copper Type   Maximum Distance
Cat5e   None
Cat6   55m – not certified
Cat6a   90 / 100m
Cat7   90 / 100m
Cat8   90 / 100m
Fibre Optic Ethernet Cable Transmission Speed
Fibre Type Mode Maximum Distance for 10Gig (10GBASE- R @ 850nm)
OM1 MM 33 metres
OM2 MM 82 metres
OM3 MM 300 metres
OM4 MM 550 metres
OM5 MM 550 metres
OS1 SM 2000 metres
OS2 SM 5000-10000 meters
 
When would you use fiber optic ethernet cable? Advantages of fibre Optic Cable
The chart below shows whenever you require a certain speed over a longer distance then fibre optic cabling should be used. Also if several connections between the same cabinets or buildings are required then a fibre optic cable will be easier and less space consuming than installing copper cabling links. A single 96 core fibre cable could link 2 cabinets at 10gig at 100m with 48 transmission connections but would require 48 individual cat6a cables to achieve the same links

What are the disadvantages of fibre optic cable?
As with all cabling infrastructure and technology design, different systems require different connections. If the requirements for connections are small then fibre optic connections can have a higher cost of hardware for transmission vs copper cabling. A Cat6a cable can link two switches with no requirements for additional hardware but a fibre cable link will require additional fibre transmission and receiver hardware and the associated additional costs
Fibre optic cabling also is not suitable for linking analogue signals between cabinets. In legacy phone systems if analogue lines are to be linked then a copper data cable or phone cable will be required to be installed
What is the disadvantage of copper cable?
The distance limitation of copper cable is a main disadvantage of copper cabling installations. User outlets will generally be designed to be within 90m of a data cabinet to maintain the industry standards and guarantee the required speeds over the chosen copper cable specified.
However when linking buildings, floors or out to sub cabinets copper cabling cannot be used over 100m which is a disadvantage to fibre optic cable
Multiple links are also a disadvantage of copper cable to fibre optic cable. Each link in a copper cabling design must have its own designated data cabling link. The space requirements and containment requirements for multiple links can be costly and at times not possible due to space restrictions or building construction.  48 copper cable links can all be contained in 1 fibre optic cable which highlights the different in space and time required to install those cables
Copper cables are also susceptible to interference from outside electrical interference which corrupts the signals it sends. Fibre optic light pulses do not suffer this interference
Is fibre optic cable expensive?
The components of fibre optic cable are no greater cost than copper cable components. Furthermore when the core size of the fibre cable increase economies of scale of cost come into play and the price by core / link reduces
However the cost difference between copper cable and fibre optic cable is in the transmission hardware. Copper cabling doesn’t require any additional hardware to link cabinets or create additional ports within a user space outside of the switch ports. Fibre optic cabling however required hardware to convert the traditional electrical data transmission to light pulses and back again for transmission. Depends on the distances, speed and requirements the hardware can be an expensive addition to the existing system.
The price difference between fibre optic cabling and copper data cabling has narrowed as time has passed and that cost difference is changing here each type of cable is used. Data centres have moved predominantly more towards fibre optic cabling links as the requirement for increased bandwidth in the data centre environment has increased.

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