An optical fiber cable (or fiber-optic cable) is a flexible cable which contains one or multiple optical fibers. These cables can range from carrying a single fiber to accommodating dozens or even hundreds, depending on the application. Where traditional copper cables max out at about 10 gigabits per second, fiber optic cables can handle 100 gigabits per second with commercially available hardware, and. Photo: Light pipe: fiber optics means sending light beams down thin strands of plastic or glass by making them bounce repeatedly off the walls. This fundamental difference is why it's so fast and efficient.