Long-haul optics refers to the transmission of visible light signals over optical fiber cable for great distances, especially without or with minimal use of repeaters.
Normally, repeaters are necessary at intervals in a length of fiber optic cable to keep the signal quality from deteriorating to the point of non-usability.
In long-haul optical systems, the goal is to minimize the number of repeaters per unit distance, and ideally, to render repeaters unnecessary.