Free Space Optics: Current Applications and Future Challenges

Table 1

Comparison of FSO with different communication system.

Parameters	FSO	Optical fiber	Microwave radio	Coaxial cable
Installation	Moderate	Difficult	Difficult	Moderate
Data rate	Gbps	Independent	Mbps	Mbps
Security	Good	Very good	Poor	Good
Connectivity	P2P, P2MP short and long reach	P2P, P2MP short and long reach	P2P short reach	Multidrop short reach
Maintenance	Low	Low	Low	Moderate
Spectrum license	Not required	Required	Required	Required