(Telecompaper) France Telecom-Orange and Alcatel-Lucent have deployed the world's first optical link offering a capacity of 400 Gbps per wavelength in a live network. Following a successful field trial, a 400 Gbps wavelength optical link is now operational between Paris and Lyon. This link, which was deployed within France Telecom-Orange's operational environment, represents a milestone for long-distance terrestrial network technology, the operator said. With capacity four times higher than the maximum bandwidth currently available and using 44 wavelengths, the new optical link can transmit up to 17.6 Tbps of traffic in total. RENATER, the public interest group that manages the telecommunications network for higher education and research institutions in France and that is a customer of Orange Business Services, will be the first to test the functionality of a 400 Gbps connection in a real-life situation. The pilot phase also aims to test the latest switching equipment supplied by major OEMs on a connection running at this capacity. The link uses Alcatel-Lucent's 400 Gbps Photonic Service Engine.