FiTT – Fiber to Telescope Terminal

Bertin’s FiTT optical equipment bridges the gap between ground fiber optic networks and stellar communications.

FiTT technology provides the connection between conventional fiber optic network and stellar fiber, very directive, highly accurate high-power light beams traveling thousands of kilometers through space to connect satellites and ground. After the space demonstration of the single wavelength FiTT 1.0, Bertin supplies a FiTT 2.0 equipment ready to be integrated into a complete payload mounted on the satellite for multiple wavelengths high capacity WDM link.

Bertin’s SDA compliant FiTT equipment opens new possibilities for building high speed Internet communication infrastructures, without the burden of installing, maintaining and securing fiber optic cables on land or under the sea.

Also, with a light beam sent from a satellite in geostationary orbit covering a fixed ground area no larger than a football field, free space optical communication allows for enhanced communications security with limited eavesdropping potential compared to ground fiber networks and hubs spanning tens of thousands of miles.

Four configurations

Bertin’s FiTT 2.0 equipment is designed for onboard use on satellites and mobile ground stations. It can be configured on demand in four separate arrangements:

• Single channel FiTT: This is the basic FiTT version and most cost-effective configuration, allowing for a 50 Gb/s bi-directional link.
• 8-channel FiTT: This version of the FiTT 2.0 equipment manages eight parallel 50 Gb/s channels, for a combined 400 Gb/s throughput.
• 12-channel FiTT: The most powerful FiTT 2.0 configuration allows for a massive 600 Gb/s throughput by managing 12 separate concurrent channels.
• FiTT QKD: Bertin’s FiTT 2.0 equipment can be configured for quantum key distribution. In this mode, the FiTT equipment acts as a trusted third party to enable secure encrypted communication between two ground stations by distributing private keys to the relevant parties. Bertin’s FiTT QKD configuration opens up new possibilities for long range quantum key distribution.