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The difference between Passive Optical Network (PON) and Active Optical Network (AON)

Passive optical network (PON) and active optical network (AON) are two access technologies for building DWDM and CWDM backbone networks in FTTH systems. Both have their own advantages, so what are the main differences between them? How should we choose?

Signal Distribution

The difference in signal distribution is the biggest difference between passive optical network (PON) and active optical network (AON). In a passive optical network (PON), there is a situation where optical fiber bundles are shared between users, while in an active optical network (AON), each user has an independent optical fiber chain, and there is no shared bandwidth between each other , Therefore, relatively speaking, the passive optical network (PON) system does not run as fast as the active optical network (AON), and it is more difficult to troubleshoot when a fault occurs.

Cost

As we all know, the main sources of network costs are power supply equipment and maintenance costs. It can be seen from the above that the passive optical network (PON) has no other power supply equipment except for both ends, and requires less maintenance and no power supply; while the active optical network (AON) mainly uses power supply equipment for network transmission, so relatively In general, the cost of active optical network (AON) is higher than that of passive optical network.

Coverage

Passive optical networks (PONs) typically only cover distances up to 20 kilometers, while active optical networks (AONs) can cover distances up to about 100 kilometers. In other words, users in the passive optical network (PON) must be closer to the input signal.

Application Range

In addition to the factors mentioned above, practical applications also need to consider other factors. For example, when it comes to radio frequency deployment and video services, it is more appropriate to choose Passive Optical Network (PON); if the target users have higher requirements on the network or a large number of users (such as commercial customers or multiple residential buildings), choose Active Optical Network (AON) is more suitable.

In addition to the differences mentioned above, there are other differences between the two networks. For example, industry standards, popularity, etc.