Hybrid Fibre Coaxial
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Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) is a telecommunications industry term for a network which incorporates both optical fibre along with coaxial cable to create a broadband network. It has been commonly employed by cable TV operators since the 1990s.
The coaxial portion of the network connects 100-2000 homes (500 is typical) in a tree-and-branch configuration. Radio frequency amplifiers are used at intervals to overcome cable attenuation and splitting losses.
An optical node converts optical signals to electrical and vice versa. It is a "dumb" device in that it does not demodulate or otherwise interpret the signals. Fiber optic cables connect the optical node to a distant head end or hub.
An HFC network may carry, using frequency division multiplexing, a variety of signal types, including analog TV, digital TV, telephone, and data.
The DOCSIS or EuroDOCSIS standards specifies a method of data communication via HFC networks.