Unit-V

Basics of Fiber Optics

Introduction, Principle of Optical Fiber, Acceptance
Angle and Acceptance Cone, Numerical Aperture,
Types of Optical fibers. Attenuation in Optical Fibers,
Application of Optical Fiber in communication system
 Introduction

Optical fiber is a long thin transparent dielectric material

which carries EM waves of visible and IR frequencies
from one end to the other end of the fiber by means of
TIR.

NOTE: Glass or Plastic is used as Dielectric material.

Optical fibers works as Wave guides in optical television

signals, digital data to transmit voice television signals,
digital data to any desired distance from one end to the
other end of the fiber.
 ‘Fiber Optics is a technology related to
transportation of optical energy(light energy) in
guiding media specifically glass fibers’

It has become popular because of the following reasons:

1). Higher information carrying capacity.
2). Light in weight, small in size, low cost.
3). No hazards of short circuits and can safely used in
explosive environments.
4). No possibility of internal noise and cross talk
generation.
5). Using an optical fiber, 15,000 independent speeches can
be sent simultaneously where as using a pair of copper wires,
only 48 independent speech signals can be sent.
 Optical fiber consists of three sections

1. Core 2. Cladding 3. Protective Jacket

Core: It is an inner cylindrical material made up of glass or plastic.

Cladding: It is a cylindrical shell of glass or plastic material in which

Core is inserted.

Protective Jacket: The Cladding is enclosed in polyurethane jacket and

it protects the fiber from surroundings.

NOTE: The RI of core is slightly greater than the RI of Cladding. The

normal standard values are 1.48 and 1.46 respectively.
 Structure of an Optical fiber

Poly urethane protective jacket

Cladding

Core

• Principle: Optical fiber works on the principle of TIR. Once

light ray enters into core ,it propagates by means of multiple
TIR’ s at core-cladding interface.
 RERAR MEDIUM

NORMAL
NORMAL

r r = 90

 
DENSAR MEDIUM

  c   c
 NORMAL
RERAR MEDIUM


DENSAR MEDIUM

  c
according to law of refraction
n1 sin   n2 sin r
   c  r  90 0

n2
sin  c  sin 90 0

n1
n2
sin  c 
n1
 Acceptance Angle

• The maximum angle of incidence at the end face of

an Optical fiber for which the light ray can be
propagated along Core-Cladding interface is known
as maximum Acceptance angle. It is also called
Acceptance cone half angle.
 Core-Cladding interface

B
θr
θ
Core n1
θr
θi A
C Fiber axis

Cladding n2
Incident light ray
Applying Snell’ s law for Air-Core media

n0 sin  i  n1 sin  r ..............(1)

from the right angle triangle ABC
 r    90 0

 r  90  
0

n0 sin  i  n1 sin(900   )
n0 sin  i  n1 cos 
n1
sin  i  cos  .........(2)
n0
when   critical angle( c )   i   m
n1
sin  m  cos  c ................(3)
n0
according to law of refraction
n1 sin i  n2 sin r
i   c  r  90 0
n2
sin  c  sin 90 0
n1
n2
sin  c 
n1
n2 2
cos  c  1  sin 2  c  1  ( )
n1

n1  n2
2 2

cos  c  ............(4)
n1
 substitute equation (4) in (3)

n1  n2
2 2
n1
sin  m 
n0 n1
if the medium surrounding the fiber is air , then n0  1

sin  m  n1  n2
2 2

 max  sin 1
n1  n2
2 2

Which is required expression for Maximum

Acceptance Angle in optical fibers.
 Acceptance Cone
Rotating the Acceptance angle about the fiber axis
describes the Acceptance Cone of the fiber.
Light launched at the fiber end within this Acceptance
Cone alone will be accepted and propagated to the other
end of the fiber by total internal reflection.

θm
θm

Acceptance Cone
 Numerical Aperture
NA  sin  max
n1  n2
2 2
• The light gathering capacity of an
optical fiber is known as Numerical sin  max 
Aperture and it is proportional to n0
Acceptance Angle. NA  n1  n2
2 2

• It is numerically equal to sine of NA  ( n1  n2 )(n1  n2 )

minimum Acceptance Angle. n1  n2

n1
NA  n1 ( n1  n2 )
The ratio between the difference n1  n2
in RI’s of
NA  n1 2
2
Core and Cladding to that of RI of
core is called the fractional change. NA  n1 2
 TYPES OF OPTICAL FIBRES

On the basis of variation of RI of core, the optical fibers

are mainly classified into following types. i.e.,

1.Step Index fiber 2.Gradex Index fiber

NOTE: Based on Mode of propagation, the fibers are

further divided into Single Mode and Multi Mode.
 Single Mode Step Index fiber

The RI is constant for the core in this fiber. As we go radically from center
of the core, the RI undergoes a step change at core-cladding interface .

The core diameter of this fiber is about 8 to 10µm and the outer diameter
of cladding is 60 to 70µm.

There is only one path for light ray propagation. Hence it is called single
mode step index fiber.

It is a reflective fiber since light is transmitted from one end to the other
end of a fiber by TIR.

These are extensively used because distortion and transmission losses are
very less.
 Refractive index profile of
single mode step index fiber

60 to 70 µm

8 to 10 µm

RI

Radial distance
SINGLE MODE STEP INDEX FIBER

CORE

RAY
PROPAGATION

CLADDING
 Multimode Step Index Fiber

The construction of this fiber is similar to Single mode step

index fiber but dimensions of Core and Cladding are much
larger to have more number of paths for light propagation.

The Core diameter varies from 50 to 200µm and the

Cladding diameter varies from 100 to 250µm.

It is also a reflective fiber since light is propagated in the

form of multiple TIRS.
REFRACTIVE INDEX PROFILE OF MULTI MODE STEP INDEX FIBRE

100 to 250 µm

50 to 200 µm

RI

Radial distance
 GRADED INDEX FIBRE

In this fiber , Radially the RI of Core continuously decreases

from center to the surface.

The RI is maximum at the center of Core and Minimum at

the Surface.

This fiber can be a single mode or Multimode ,the diameters

of core and cladding varies from 50-200µm and 100-250µm
respectively.
REFRACTIVE INDEX PROFILE OF SINGLE MODE GRADED INDEX FIBER

100 to 250 µm

50 to 200 µm

RI

Radial distnce
REFRACTIVE INDEX PROFILE OF MULTIMODE GRADED INDEX FIBRE

100 to 250 µm

50 to 200 µm

RI

Radial distance
• As RI changes continuously radially in Core, the light rays
suffers continuous refraction with in the Core from its center
to surface.

• Thus the propagation of light rays are not due to TIR but
by refraction. Therefore it is called Refractive fiber.

• In this fiber, the light rays travel at different speeds in

different parts.

• Near the surface RI is least so, the light rays travel faster
compared to the light rays near the axis. Because of this all
the rays almost arrive at the same time at the other end of the
fiber.
LIGHT PROPAGATION IN MUTI-MODE
GRADED INDEX FIBRE

CLADDING

CORE
Difference b/w Step Index and Graded
Index Optical Fibers
RI of the core remains RI of the core decreases
constant and decreases a parabolically from the axis
step at cladding. of the fiber to cladding.
It is of refractive type. It is refractive type.
Signal distortion is high in Signal distortion is very
multimode step index fiber. low in graded index fiber.

NA is more for multimode NA is less for grand index

step index fiber . fiber .
No focusing of light rays Focusing of light rays
takes place. takes place.
 Optical fiber Communication System

• An efficient optical fiber communication system

requires high information carrying capacity
such as voice signals, video signals over long
distances with a minimum number of repeaters.
It essentially consists of following parts.

1.Encoder 2. Transmitter 3.Wave guide

4.Receiver 5.Decoder
• 1.Encoder: It converts electric signal corresponding to
analog information such as voice, figures, objects etc
into a binary data. This binary data comes out in the form
of stream of electrical pulses.

• 2.TRANSMITTER: It mainly consists of drive circuit and

a light source. Drive circuit supplies the electric pulses to
the light source from the encoder.

• NOTE: LED or diode laser is used as light source and it

converts electrical signals are infected into optical
signals. These optical signals are injected into wave
guide.
 TRANSMITTER

Electrical OPTICAL SIGNAL

DRIVE SOURCE LIGHT SOURCE
signal

ENCODER

PHOTO SIGNAL DECODER

DETECTOR RESTORER
Wave guide

AMPLIFIER

receiver
 Attenuation or Power loss in Optical fibers

• The power of the light at the out put end is found to be

always less than the power launched at the input end.

• Attenuation is found to be a function of fiber material,

wavelength of light and length of the fiber and it is
measured in terms of the decibel.
Attenuation mainly three types….
1.Scattering losses
2.Absorption losses
3.Bending losses
Bending Loss in Single Mode
Fiber

Bending loss for lowest order modes

Mode Field distributions in straight Microbending Loss Sensitivity vs

and bent fibers wavelength