Light Propagation in Optical Fibers

Module
2014

Dr. B. Grossman 0
 Normal

Refracted
ray
f2
n2
Material boundary
n 1> n 2
n1 f1
f3
Incident
Reflected
ray
ray

Snells Law: n1sinf1 = n2sinf2

(angles are polarization independent)

n2
c sin 1


n1

Reflection and Refraction

1
 a D core radius (m)
Cross-section
b For
b D cladding radius (m)
waveguide:
a axis
n1 > n2
n1
n2

n1 D core index
n2 D cladding index

D (n12 - n22)/2n12 fractional index difference

Fiber Parameters Defined 2

 3 Types of Fibers Compared

easier splicing - high coupling %- high modal dispersion- lowest BW

easier splicing - high coupling %- lower modal dispersion- higher BW

Careful splicing - Low coupling %- no modal dispersion

Careful splicing - Low coupling %- no modal dispersion-extra high BW

0.1% -0.2%

3
Standard telecom Standard telecom and laser delivery

Telecom and sensors

Standard Glass Fiber

Dimensions 4
Radial Index
Profiles

multimode

single mode

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Analysis of Fiber Propagation- Ray Theory or E&M Theory

Ray Theory Analysis of Fiber Propagation

Approximate representation only! Good for angles only.

But Only usable for dimensions larger (~100x) than wavelength

Example: He-Ne LASER l 0.633 mm and core radius a > 50 mm ok!

ILD l = 1 micron, junction area= microns not ok!
Electromagnetic Wave Theory (Maxwells Equations) and boundary cond. exactly
describe the propagation of optical waves in waveguides- amplitude, direction,
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polarization, frequency, phase.
 Zero diameter spot nondiverging wavefront

collimated

Diverging wavefront

nonzero diameter spot

Not collimated

2w~l

Rays are Approximations

of Actual Propagation! 7
 So Then Why use Rays in the first place?
Easy to determine angles, etc. (ex: Snell's law)
Easy to trace light path in optical fibers or lens systems.
Approximate answer usually closeto actual values when
d >> lo.

Why not use Rays?

Answers are only approximations. May need exact results
Does not include diffraction effects (very important).
Answers can be totally wrong! 8
 Propagation Modes in Fibers
(modes are solutions of Maxwells equations i.e., allowed E fields)
Ray 1 Ray 2
nonpropagating or cladding - or leaky propagating or bound modes (TIR)
modes

Refracted
n2 Cladding
ray

n
c Reflected
ray (TIR)
Core
a n1
Acceptance
Angle

Ray 2
n2 Cladding
Ray 1

a sin 1 n12 n22 Acceptance Angle in Air

RAY APPROACH 9
 Wave Theory
Maxwells
equations:
+
Boundary conditions

results

Wave equation (t, z) for system

solutions

Allowable propagating E waves including k, vp

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 E field solutions in infinite dimension media:

E E ( , f ) sin(t z ) real format Plane, spherical, waves

k = 2P / l= propagation constant = any value depends only on n

Only one value of v: v = c/n

E field solutions in bounded media:

For bounded medium, like fibers, only discrete values of = 1 , 2, .. n are allowed

effective index/velocity in axial direction neff = i lo / 2 = co/v eff

Thus, n2 < neff < n1
Only discrete values of v are allowed! and and v1 < veff < v2
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Parameter Characterizing Waveguide=cut off frequency or V number

2a 2 2
V n1 n2
l0
a - Core Radius

Fiber manufacturer n1- Refractive Index of Core

n2- Refractive Index of Cladding

user l0- Wavelength in Vacuum

V (fiber parameters and wavelength of light injected!)

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 Results for single mode fibers
Gloge graph
axial 2a 2
core n1 V n1 n2 2
l
0
lowest modes

0.1(n1-n2)
Single mode
propagates

n1-n2
neff
1. Calculate V number
2. Draw vertical line at this V
3. See # of modes possible
highest modes 4. Calculate n for each mode
5. Determine v for each mode

clad n2

V=2.4
V
V < 2.4 single mode fiber, 2.4 < V < 12 few mode ,V >20 multi- mode fiber13
 Number of Bound Modes
Multimode: V>>10: 100s of modes
Single mode : V<2.4 has one mode
Few mode: 2.4 < V < 8 2-6 modes (uses SM Fiber)

Depends on Fiber Parameters (optical and construction) for Cylindrical Waveguides

V >>10
Cylindrical waveguide (step profile) N = V2/2
Cylindrical waveguide (graded profile) N = V2/4
In fibers; N is proportional to the numerical aperture, NA

Example: For step index fiber with n1 = 1.46, n2 = 1.45, 2a = 50mm, and NA = 0.17. If
wavelength = 0.85mm, V = 31.5 and N 500. (D (n1 n2)/n1 = 0.01/1.46).

For V < 1
MUST use Gloge graph! At V, count modes and determine phase velocity
 Comparison of ray and wave theory
results for fibers
Ray theory Wave theory
Critical angle Modes at all internal Modes at only certain
angles less than this will internal angles less than
propagate this will propagate

Acceptance angle Modes at all external Modes at only certain

angles less than this will external angles less than
propagate this will propagate

Number of modes Infinite Finite (Gloge graph)

Mode velocity(s) constant c0/n1 Varies (c0/n1) < v < (c0/n2)

(Gloge graph)

Axial mode velocity fastest slowest

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 Calculating allowed modes and velocities
n1
slowest lowest modes

(n1-n2) / 10

n1-n2
neff related to veff

Example:
for V= 2 and
fastest highest modes
n1= 1.5 n2= 1.49 n2
V=2.4
3.50(n1 n2 ) 3.50(1.5 1.49)
V
neff n2 1.49 1.493 2a 2
10 10 V n1 n2 2
3 108 l
veff 2.009377093 108 0 16
1.493
Example 2:

For a fiber with the following operating parameters:

n1 = 1.5
n2 = 1.4
a = 1.374 m
o = 1550 nm
Calculate:
(i) V
(ii) Determine number of modes
(iii) neff for each mode
(iv) Veff for each mode
(v) acceptance angle
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Solved example

Solution:
2a
(i) V n12 n22
l0

(
2 1.374 106 1.52 1.4 2
(
1550 109
2.999 3
(ii) determine # of modes
On Gloge graph draw vertical line at V = 3 and # of points of
intersection = # of modes. Lower order modes are nearer core index
and higher order modes are nearer the cladding index

Since V = 3, # of modes = 2

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 1.5 1.4
neff1 1.4 7.25
10
(iii)
1.4725
n n
neff2 n2 x 1 2 ; where x is from graph' s y - axis
10
1.5 1.4
1.4 1.5
10
1.415
c
Veff
neff
(iv) 3 108
Veff1 2.03735144 108 m/s
1.4725
3 108
Veff 2 2.2101413427 108 m/s
1.415
(v) Acceptance angle for fiber
(
a sin 1 n12 n22 32 degrees
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Practice Problem:

1.0 For a fiber with the following operating parameters:

n1 = 1.5
n2 = 1.49
a = 5.0 m
o = 1550 nm
Calculate:
(i) V
(ii) number of modes
(iii) neff for each mode
(iv) Veff for each mode
(v) Acceptance angle for this fiber

2.0 Repeat (i)- (v) for a = 200 m and all other parameters the same
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 V depends on fiber fabrication parameters
and
the wavelength employed

2a
V n 2 n 2
l 1 2
0
In general

single mode when a small, Dn is small, dl is very small

example: Dn ~ 0.1 % a ~ 5-10 microns l=1.5 microns, dl = 1.0 nm

multimode when a large, Dn larger , l and dl small or very large

example: Dn ~ 1 % a~ 50-100 microns 450 nm < l < 1000 nm
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 Attenuation
Glass employed is very clear, but not loss free!

We have a low loss of 1-10 dB/km

Attenuation P(z) = P0(z) exp(-az) a cm-1

or a can be measured in dB/km

i.e. at 850 nm ~ 5 dB/km

at 1300 nm~ 3 dB/km
at 650nm ~ 10 dB/km cant use for longhaul communications

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 In Class Practice Problems
1. What is the definition of D?
2. What type of index profile is used in single mode fibers? Multimode fibers?
3. An optical system has components that are ~ 3 cm in diameter and a slit. If the slit is 67 microns
wide, would you analyze it using wave or ray theory? What if the slit was 10 microns wide?
4. A graded index fiber has a V number of 30. N1 = 1.54, N2 = 1.5 . How many modes propagate?
Most of the modes propagate with what average phase velocity?
5. A link has an attenuation of 5 .0 dB/km. If 3 mw of light is input, how much power in mW
is output if the link is 2.0 km long?
6. A fiber has the following parameters: core index = 1.49, clad index = 1.48, core radius = 5 microns
and cladding = 125 microns. If we operate at 1300 nm wavelength, determine: n1-n2,
V, number of propagating modes, number of non propagating modes, Phase velocity of the first
order mode.
7. Repeat part 6 assuming the only difference are the core indices. Core index = 1.47,
cladding index = 1.48
8. True or false: I am willing for this to count as a graded quiz. Your choice will be honored.
9. My suggestions regarding the experiment to correct or improve it are:

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