Introduction to Repeaters

        A repeater is a communication device that retransmits the weak signals with greater power.  It receives the signals over the wireless, optical transmission and network cable mediums such as copper wire, UTP/STP and fiber optic cables and regenerates the analog or digital signals.  It can relay the data signals between the different subnetworks. 

      Repeater operates at the physical layer of the OSI layers model and it is not such as intelligent device like the switches and routers that perform the smart routing based on the MAC and IP addresses of the source and destination computers.  Repeaters are also used in the broadcasting, where they are known as the relay transmitters and boosters.   Repeaters restrengthen the data signals in the telecommunications.  Normally a repeater consists of the following things.

• Amplifier
• Transmitter
• Isolator
• Antennas
• Radio Receiver

In a fiber optic network, a repeater consists of the following.

• Amplifier
• Photocell
• IRED
• IR
• LED

      Fiber optic repeaters are less expensive and operate at low power.
Repeaters were also used to connect the segments of the cables.  Repeaters are of mainly two types i.e. with internal antenna and with external antenna.   If you are using repeater in your network make sure that is it compatible with other devices in your network.