Japan sets world record with 1.02 petabit/second internet speed

Researchers from Japan's National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) and Sumitomo Electric Industries have set a new world record for the fastest internet connection, achieving a data transfer speed of 1.02 petabits per second.

This record was set over a distance of 1,808 kilometers, roughly equivalent to the distance between Berlin and Naples or Missouri and Montana. The new technology was enabled using a special 19-core optical fiber with a 0.125 mm diameter coating.

This innovation is compatible with existing infrastructure, and by November 2024, it will allow for data transfers up to 26 times the total fixed broadband internet traffic in Japan.

A speed of 1.02 petabits per second equates to the transmission of over one million gigabytes of data per second. This means that Netflix's entire content archive could be downloaded 30 times in just one second.

This breakthrough is being hailed as a revolutionary step in optical fiber communication technology.

For the first time in the world, petabit-level data transmission has been successfully achieved over a distance of more than 1,000 kilometers using standard optical fiber.

Experts view this success as the foundation for a new generation of infrastructure that could address the growing need for intercontinental data transfer.

This advancement is seen as a key milestone in the transition to post-5G communication systems and could play a significant role in shaping the future of high-speed data transmission in an increasingly digital world.