Comprehensive performance evaluation of high-split FTTH networks under optical amplification constraints

Abstract This paper presents a performance evaluation of fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) systems considering the impact of optical splitter ratios and the use of optical amplification. The analysis focuses on four splitter ratios 1:16, 1:32, 1:64, and 1:128 across distances up to 40 km. Key performance metrics such as Q-factor and bit error rate (BER) are calculated based on a power budget model that includes fiber attenuation, connector and splice losses, and splitter loss. The simulation is conducted both with and without a 10 dB optical amplifier placed before the splitter. Results show that lower split ratios maintain high signal quality and low BER across longer distances, while higher split ratios experience performance degradation much earlier due to increased losses. This paper presents a performance analysis of an FTTH system simulated using Opti-System 23 under split ratios ranging from 1:16 to 1:256, with and without optical amplification. The system employs a 1,490 nm downstream optical transmitter operating at 10 Gb/s over 40 km of single-mode fiber. Results demonstrate that deploying an optical amplifier with 10 dB gain and 4 dB noise figure enables a reduction in transmitter power from 10 dBm to 6 dBm while maintaining acceptable eye-diagram quality and signal performance at higher split ratios.