d The Existing Telephone Company Infrastructure Overview The Central Office Connection Methods The Original Cable TV Infrastructure Overview Headend The Cable TV Distribution System Contents The Evolving Local Telephone Network Overview Options The Evolving Cable TV Infrastructure Overview Bandwidth Limitations Hybrid Fiber-Coaxial Systems Fiber to the Home Overview Economics Bypass Chapter 8 Fiber in the Building Fiber-Optic Modems Basic Operation Employment Features Selection Features The Model TC1540 Fiber-Optic Multiplexers Rationale Overview Features Representative Multiplexers Optical Mode Converters Overview Operation Features Comparing Converters Appendix Frequency VS. Wavelength Abbreviations Glossary Index This page intentionally left blank. mean, Team-Fly® PREFACE Today we are witnessing a revolution in the field of communications. That revolution involves the use of light as a mechanism to convey infor- mation along an optical fiber. Although the use of light along an optical fiber dates to experimental efforts during the 1930s and was successfully implemented during the 1970s, it wasn't until the turn of the millen- nium that the use of optical networking exploded. As we entered the new millennium, optical networking represented the fastest-growing segment in the rapidly developing field of communica- tions. Because of their high bandwidth and low noise, optical fibers are well suited to transport information. While many articles in trade publi- cations have focused on the use of optical networking to provide the infrastructure necessary to cope with the increasing use of the Internet, as a famous announcer would say, "That's only part of the story." The real story associated with optical networking is its widespread use in local and wide area networks (LANs and WANs) and, more recently, in intrabuilding communications. The use of optical networking devices is beginning to approach ubiq- uity within the office environment and is expected to extend to the home within a few years. In the office environ