Microwave Frequency

Microwaves are a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths ranging from 1 millimetre to 1 meter with a frequency between 300 MHz to 300 GHz.

In the world of high-frequency trading, where a few milliseconds can mean considerable profits, trading companies use microwave communication which transmits data as radio pulses through the air and provides ultra-low latency. They are faster than fiber optics and send data almost at the speed of light. However, one of the limitations of using microwave connection is that the signal can be disrupted by bad weather.

For example, if there are a series of microwave dishes fixed to towers between London and Frankfurt forming a microwave link, then this network will cut the fibre-optic’s latency by just 4.6 milliseconds on one side. So, the net round trip latency for transmitting data between Frankfurt and London is decreased by 8.35 milliseconds compared to the London-Frankfurt fiber link.