This application provides a communication method and an optical module. The method includes: A first optical module determines a first delay. The first optical module sends the first delay to an interface chip. According to the communication method and the optical module that are provided in this application, a delay in the optical module can be reported to the interface chip, so as to improve precision of time synchronization between a master clock and a slave clock, thereby further improving clock precision of a network device.

This application provides a communication method and an optical module. The method includes: A first optical module determines a first delay. The first optical module sends the first delay to an interface chip. According to the communication method and the optical module that are provided in this application, a delay in the optical module can be reported to the interface chip, so as to improve precision of time synchronization between a master clock and a slave clock, thereby further improving clock precision of a network device.

In a time synchronization system, a network controller sets transmission distance information on a transmission distance through which an optical signal is transmitted between transmission and receiving servers via a queueless network to a receiving server, based on network topology information. The transmitting server transmits a transmitting side current time synchronized with a reference time to the receiving server 12 via the queueless network. The receiving server calculates a transmission delay time between the transmission and receiving servers by dividing the transmission distance, which is based on the set transmission distance information, by light speed in the queueless network. A receiving side current time is calculated by adding the transmission delay time to the transmitting side current time.

A forward optical intensity modulation signal, generated by optical intensity-modulating a laser signal using a forward microwave phase modulation signal, is transmitted from a base to a remote station. A backward microwave phase modulation signal, in which frequency of the forward microwave phase modulation signal is changed by demodulating the forward optical intensity modulation signal, is generated, and a backward optical intensity modulation signal, generated by optical intensity-modulating the laser signal using the backward microwave phase modulation signal, is transmitted from the remote station to the base. The backward microwave phase modulation signal is extracted by photoelectric converting the backward optical intensity modulation signal, a round trip timing is extracted by demodulating the backward microwave phase modulation signal, and transmission delay is determined from a difference between the timing and the round trip timing.