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MATERIAL: Glass/plastic as thin as human hair.

It is designed to guide light waves along the length of the fiber with
the help of successive total internal reflection from side walls of the fiber.

INNERMOST REGION:

It is the light guiding region called core with refractive index n1.

MIDDLE REGION:

It is the region through which light ray is internally reflected because

refractive index of the cladding material is always lower than the core. It reduces
scattering losses and adds mechanical strength to the fiber.

OUTERMOST REGION:

It protects the core and cladding from moisture, dust, abrasion and also
give mechanical strength to fiber.

Optical fibers are either mode as a single fiber or a flexible bundle of

cable : A bundle of fibers means numbers of fiber in a single jacket. Which is shown
in fig.
 OPTICAL FIBER MODES:

Modes are equivalent to number of paths of light.

´The propogation of light along a waveguide can be describedin terms of a

set of guided electromagnetic waves called the modes of given wave guide.µ

OR

´The paths along which the waves are in phase inside the fiber called
modes.µ

Number of modes supported by given fiber depends on the ratio

Where, d=diameter of core

=wavelength.

Light rays can propogate two ways:

1. Axial path

2. Zigzag path

Axial ray that travels along the axis of the fiber is called
zero-order ray.

TYPES OF OPTICAL FIBER WITH RESPECT TO MODE:

1. Single mode step index fiber.

2. Multi mode step index fiber.
3. Multi mode graded index fiber.
 NORMALIZED FREQUENCY (V-NUMBER) OF FIBER:

´optical fiber may be characterized by one more parameter called v-

number or normalized frequency of fiber.µ

Where, a=radius of core

=free space wave leangth

V-number or normalized freq is the parameter through which we can

decide the number of modes supported by any given fiber.

Nm = number of modes supported by any given fiber.

For step index fiber,

Nm = V2

(1) V < 2.405

fiber can support only one mode and is called single mode step index fiber.
(2) V > 2.405
Fiber can support more than one mode and is called multimode step index
fiber.
(3) V = 2.405
It is called cut off wave length of fiber.
And cut off wave length

For graded index fiber

Nm= V2

TYPES OF OPTICAL FIBER WITH RESPECT TO MATERIAL:

Materials which are used for optical fibers are transparent to

optical frequencies. It must be possible to make long, thin flexible from the
material and that have slightly different refractive indices for core &
cladding.
There are three types of fibers.
 (1)Glass core cladded with glass.
(2)Glass core cladded with plastic .
(3)Plastic core cladded with another plastic.

GLASS FIBER

Sio2 is the basic material for make the glass which is easily
available on earth. Sio2 has a refractive index of 1.458 at 850 nm (8500 A) to produce
two similar materials that have slightly different refractive index for the core and
cladding. We can change the refractive index of the glass by dopping other material
for this basic material SiO2 is dopped by Germenia (Geo2) or pentoxide (). So that
refractive index is increased and such material is used as core and pure silicaas
cladding basic material (pure silica) dopped. Germenia (Geo2) OR pentoxide (P2O5)
=core material.

When pure silica is dopped by B2O3 Or fluorine, the refractive

index is decresed. So this one dopped material is used as cladding and pure
silica as core material.

Basic material dopped B2O3 / fluorine (pure silica)

=claddingmaterial
APPLICATIONS:
Very low losses so used for long distance communication