Bringing broadband to the masses

Charles Kuen Kao 1933-2018

Known as the father of fibre-optic communication, Charles Kuen Kao revolutionised the way we benefit from a high-speed internet connection. In the mid-1960s Kao proposed a method of information delivery, in the form of light, through fibre-optic cables. The cables consisted of a long glass pipe along which light beams would be fired. You might imagine that light simply shines through the glass and escapes. However, Kao used purified glass in such a way that the wall of the pipe acted as a mirror for the light photons, allowing them to bounce within and continue travelling down the pipe, a phenomenon called total internal reflection. This results in the light information being transmitted across far-flung distances, perfect for telecommunications.

Born in Shanghai, China, Kao later moved to England, completing an electrical engineering doctorate at the University of London in 1965

Fibre optics were once thought to useless as information delivery system, but purifying the glass Kao proved everyone wrong