Wireless data transmission has just got faster after a team of German researchers achieved a record 40 Gbps transmission rate. This is the biggest...

Wireless data transmission has just got faster after a team of German researchers achieved a record 40 Gbps transmission rate. This is the biggest wireless transmission rate ever demonstrated and it matches the data transmission speed for fiber optic.

The project was conducted by a joint team of German scientists from applied physics and technology institutes. The researchers achieved the 40 Gbps wireless data transmission record rate at a frequency of 240 GHz over a one-kilometer distance.

This speed means that data off a complete DVD can be transmitted in less than a second. For comparison, some of the fastest Wi-Fi connectivity solutions on the market at the moment have a top data transmission speed of 300 Mbps.

The team developed a 240 GHz transmitter and receiver chip that only measures 4×1.5mm and is based on semi-conductor technology which uses high carrier mobility transistors. This technology makes it possible to use frequencies up to 300 GHz with receivers and transmitters that are actually compact and integrated circuits.

German scientists say that in this high frequency range, the atmosphere shows low attenuation and this actually enables directional broadband radio links. This makes the entire wireless data transmission system easier to set up and the signal more resistant to bad weather conditions, they said.

The project may also mark another first in the field of data transmission: having radio links transmit glass fiber data rates. The glass fiber signal would be fed into a radio link without any transcoding and then be transmitted and redirected to glass fiber.

Scientists say the 40Gbps transmission rate may be only the beginning, as higher frequency data rates are likely to be achieved over the following years. In the near future, this radio link system can be used to provide broadband Internet connections to rural areas and other places that are difficult to access by traditional optical fiber networks.

[Image via KIT.edu]