>Using only a single light source, scientists have set a world record by transmitting 1.8 petabits per second.
In 2021 the world record was 300 TB[0]. Why is the headline misleading? for reference, the headline is currently "Record-breaking chip can transmit entire internet's traffic per second." This seems to be correct:
>According to a study from global telecommunications market research and consulting firm TeleGeography, global internet bandwidth has risen by 28% over the course of 2022, with a four-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 29%, and is now standing at 997Tbps (terabits per second).[1]
>Normally, data over a fiber is multiplexed using many wavelengths of light (wave-division multiplexing, or WDM for short). These wavelengths are generated from an array of lasers, forming a frequency comb.
I think that is a relativly new techniuque. For example see https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-14010-7 :
>Optical frequency combs were originally conceived for establishing comparisons between atomic clocks1 and as a tool to synthesize optical frequencies2,3, but they are also becoming an attractive light source for coherent fiber-optical communications, where they can replace the hundreds of lasers used to carry digital data
So "normally" might give the wrong impression. As far as I know, no commercial service is using it. One reason is the cost, which this article addresses by proposing a chip based apporach which makes it cheaper and easier.
[0]https://www.nict.go.jp/en/press/2021/07/12-1.html
[1]https://www.computerweekly.com/news/252524883/New-networking...
Edit: I should point out that the "previous" record was with a 4-core optical fiber, whereas this one uses a 37 core one. They are really two different things: one about the cable and the other about the transmitter. So this one doesn't "beat" the other.