Which aspect of fiber optic cables makes them less prone to interference compared to copper cables?

Fiber optic cables utilize glass or plastic fibers to transmit data as light signals, which is the primary reason they are less susceptible to interference compared to copper cables. The transmission of light through the optical fibers is immune to electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio frequency interference (RFI) that can affect electrical signals traveling through copper. This immunity results from the inherent properties of light and the materials used in fiber optics, which do not conduct electricity and thus are not influenced by nearby electrical fields.

In contrast, other aspects such as shorter physical length or color coding do not contribute to the interference characteristics. While shorter cables may reduce some loss and potential issues, they do not inherently make the cables less prone to interference. Color coding serves a different purpose—helping in the identification and organization of cables—rather than affecting interference levels. Metal shielding is utilized in some copper cables to mitigate interference but is not applicable to fiber optics, which depend on the light transmission method rather than electrical signals.