An optical repeater is a device used in fiber-optic communication systems to amplify and regenerate light signals as they travel through optical fibers. Over long distances, optical signals can weaken and degrade due to attenuation and dispersion, leading to potential data loss or errors. The optical repeater receives the weakened light signal, converts it back into an electrical signal, amplifies or cleans it, and then retransmits it as a refreshed light signal down the fiber. This process helps maintain signal strength and data integrity across extended cable runs, making optical repeaters essential for long-haul fiber-optic networks, such as those used in undersea cables and large-scale data infrastructures.