Optical Zonu, a leading provider of radio frequency over fiber (RFoF) transport solutions, has expanded its RFoF offering to improve connectivity for 5G direct-to-cellular satellite services with the hiring of former AST SpaceMobile Gateway Engineer Luis Tellez-Giron as an Aerospace and Defense Sales Engineer.
Luis Tellez-Giron has over 30 years of experience in satellite communications sales and engineering roles. With AST SpaceMobile, Tellez-Giron analyzed waveform transport optimization for the Gateway equipment in ST Engineering, which is required for the 5G non-terrestrial network (NTN) with higher bandwidth requirements. He was also tasked with analyzing the Digital Intermediate Frequency Interoperability (DIFI) interfaces to meet these higher bandwidth needs. In this capacity, he was introduced to in-production Optical Zonu equipment and observed a full-scale deployment.
“We have seen a surge of interest in our solutions that address this market need for connecting 5G nodes to the RF satellite equipment,” said Meir Bartur, co-founder and CEO of Optical Zonu. “Luis’ extensive experience on the cutting edge of 5G satellite communications makes him perfectly suited to lead our efforts in helping more LEO satellite operators achieve their goals of accessible direct-to-phone satellite service around the world.”
Recent technological advancements in low earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations enable operators to establish Internet and direct-to-phone satellite services, which are critical for providing connectivity to remote United States locations and many countries around the globe that lack sufficient wireless infrastructure. However, these innovative networks require Satellite Gateways to beam considerable bandwidth to and from LEO constellations and maintain a low-latency, high-quality connection between the antenna and 5G radio access nodes. RFoF has proven to be a cost-effective and resilient solution to address the need to provide high-bandwidth, low-latency, and resilient RF signal transport between these points.
“It became clear very quickly that by joining Optical Zonu I would be part of a team offering critical solutions for the satellite communications market, particularly in supporting the emerging direct-to-cellular 4G/5G services,” said Tellez-Giron. “As LEO satellite technology continues to mature, it holds great promise for transforming global communication, which will require RFoF solutions to support intensive low-latency and high bandwidth requirements.”
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