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• Strip the primary buffer from the fiber using fiber strippers
not ordinary wire strippers. Do this a small section at a time
to prevent the fiber breaking, about 10mm (3/8 in) on each
cut is fine until you get used to it. Strip back about 35mm
(1.5 in).
•Clean the bare fiber with a lint free wipe and isopropyl alcohol, it
will "squeak" when it is clean.
Fiber Exposed - the outer PVC jacket, the
Cladding, and the Core
Cleaving
• The cleaver first scores the fiber and
then pulls the fiber apart to make a
clean break. It is important that the the
ends are smooth and perpendicular to
get a good joint, this is why a hand held
cleaver will not do.
• First the two fibers are aligned, you can see this on the photo
where a much magnified image shows the two fiber ends. The
display also shows how well the cleaver does its job of producing a
perfect 90 degree cut.
• Once the fibers are aligned
the splicer fires an electric
arc between the two ends
which melts them
immediately and pushes
them together, or fuses
them into one piece of fiber.
• The fusion splicer then tests
for dB loss and tensile
strength before giving the
"OK" beeps for you to
remove the splice from the
machine.
Screen Displayed
Protection
The protective tube gives physical
protection to the splice and
further protection is provided by
placing the splice into a splice
tray.
• Once all of the fibers have
been joined the whole tray
is then fixed into a splice
box which protects the
cable joint as a whole and
the cable clamps are then
tightened to prevent any
external forces from pulling
on the splices.
Fiber to Fiber Coupling Efficiency
Ps PF
Source Optical Fiber
Fiber-to-Fiber Coupling loss
1/ 2
d d
2
Acomm 2 d
F ,step arccos 1 [5-9]
a 2
2 a a 2a
Fiber end face
• Highly smooth and perpendicular end faces can be produced through this
method
• Requires a careful control of the curvature and the tension
• Improperly controlled tension can cause multiple fracture and can leave a
lip or hackled portion
Fiber Splicing
Three different types of splicing can be done
• Fusion splicing
• V-groove mechanical splicing
• Elastic tube splice
Fiber splicing
Fusion Splicing
Fusion Splicing
• It is the thermal bonding of two prepared fiber ends
• Fusion
– Involves actually melting (fusing) together the ends of two pieces of fiber. The
result is a continuous fiber without a break.
Both are capable of splice losses in the range of 0.15 dB (3%) to 0.1
dB (2%).
27
Optical fiber couplers
• passive devices in which the power transfer takes place
either:
• (a) through the fiber core cross-section by butt jointing
the fibers or by using some form of imaging optics
between the fibers (core interaction type); or
• (b) through the fiber surface and normal to its axis by
converting the guided core modes to both cladding and
refracted modes which then enable the power-sharing
mechanism (surface interaction type).
Optical fiber couplers
Optical Couplers
• Optic couplers either split optical signals into multiple paths or
combine multiple signals on one path.
• The number of input (N)/ output (M) ports, (i.e.s N x M size)
characterizes a coupler.
• Fused couplers can be made in any configuration, but they
commonly use multiples of two (2 x 2, 4 x 4, 8 x 8, etc.).
30
Multiport optical fiber couplers
•Three- and four-port (2 × 2 star couplers ) couplers, which are used for
signal splitting, distribution and combining.
•Star couplers, which are generally used for distributing a single input
signal to multiple outputs.
•Wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) devices, which are a specialized
form of coupler designed to permit a number of different peak
wavelength optical signals to be transmitted in parallel on a single fiber
•WDM couplers either combine the different wavelength optical signal
onto the fiber (i.e. multiplex) or separate the different wavelength optical
signals output from the fiber (i.e. demultiplex).
Optical fiber coupler types and
functions: (a) three-port
couplers;
(b) four-port coupler; (c) star
coupler; (d) wavelength division
multiplexing and
demultiplexing couplers
Coupler Configuration
P1 P2 P1 P2
P3 P3
1
2
3
1
2 1 ……n
n
33
Three- and four-port couplers
100% coupling
• It is wavelength dependent. Resonance occur when the two fibres are close to each other.
i The coupling length for 1.55 µm > the coupling length for
1.3 µm:
– 100 % of light coupling for 1.3 µm to the core of fibre B, and to the core of
fibre A.
– 100% of light coupling for 1.55 µm to the core of fibre B
Source: Australian Photonics48CRC
Couplers - Fabrication
• The amount of power transmitted into fibres depend on
the coupling length
• The coupling length changes with the wavelength.
• The splitting ratio can be tuned choosing the coupling
length.
• By choosing carefully the coupler length, it is possible to
combine or separate Two different wavelengths
49
Coupler - Performance Parameters
i Coupling ratio or splitting ratio
P2
In dB
CR
10
log
10
For 2 x 2 coupler
P
P
1 2
P0
Le 10 log10
P1 P2
50
Coupler - Performance Parameters
• Insertion Loss
Power from any single output Pt
Li
Power input Pi
P0
In dB Liso 10 log10
P3
51
Star Couplers
• Optical couplers with more than four ports.
• Types of star couplers:
– transmission star coupler
the light at any of the input port is split equally through all output ports.
52
Fibre Star Coupler
Combines power from N inputs and divided them between M outputs
1 1
P1
PN
N N
1
Coupling ratio
CR
10
log
1010
log
N
10
N
P
in
e
L 10log
Excess loss
10
N
i
P
out
,i
1
Power at any one output Po
,
i (P
1P
2
.......
PN)
n
53
Star Coupler - 8 X 8
Star couplers are optical couplers with more than four ports
1 1, 2, ... 8
2
3
4
N/2 5
6
7
8 1, 2, ... 8
log 2 N
N
No of 3 dB coupler N
c
3
dB log
2N
2
54
Star Coupler - 8 X 8 - contd.
• If a fraction of power traversing each 3 dB coupler = Fp,
where 0< Fp < 1.
Then, power lost within the coupler = 1- Fp.
Excess loss Le 10 log10 ( Fplog 2 N )
Coupling ratio
1
CR
10
log
1010
log
N
10
(splitting loss) N
55
Reflection Star Couplers
1 X 8 coupler
57
Splitters
• The simplest couplers are fiber optic splitters.
• They possess at least three ports but may have more than 32 for more
complex devices.
• Popular splitting ratios include 50%-50%, 90%-10%, 95%-5% and 99%-1%;
however, almost any custom value can be achieved.
• Excess loss: assures that the total output is never as high as the input. It
hinders the performance. All couplers and splitters share this parameter.
• They are symmetrical. For instance, if the same coupler injected 50 µW
into the 10% output leg, only 5 µW would reach the common port.
Output Output
Input
58
Coupler + Splitter - Applications
• Local monitoring of a light source output (usually for control
purposes).
• Distributing a common signal to several locations
simultaneously.
• Making a linear, tapped fiber optic bus. Here, each splitter
would be a 95%-5% device that allows a small portion of the
energy to be tapped while the bulk of the energy continues
down the main trunk.
59
Optical Filters
• Passband l i-1 l i l i+1
- Insertion loss
- Ripple
- Wavelengths
(peak, center, edges)
- Bandwidths
(0.5 dB, 3 dB, ..)
- Polarization dependence
• Stopband
- Crosstalk rejection
- Bandwidths
- (20 dB, 40 dB, ..)
Crosstalk Passband Crosstalk
61
Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBG)
In practice the colour shifts will be much finer than those illustated
http://www.co2sink.org/ppt/fbganimation.ppt
62
Fiber Brag Gratings (FBG) - contd.
Bragg Gratings
Optical Fibre
Dz Dz
l1 l2 l3 lN
• Regular interval pattern: reflective at one wavelength
• Notch filter, add / drop multiplexer (see later)
63
Optical Isolators
• Only allows transmission in one direction through it Main
application: To protect lasers and optical amplifiers from returning
reflected light, which can cause instabilities
• Insertion loss:
– Low loss (0.2 to 2 dB) in forward direction
– High loss in reverse direction:
20 to 40 dB single stage, 40 to 80 dB dual stage)
• Return loss:
– More than 60 dB without connectors
64
Principle of operation
65
Optical Circulators
η = PF / P S
PF =Power coupled into the fiber
1.Fiber misalignments:
a. Different core sizes
b. Numerical apertures
c. Core refractive index profiles
2.Clean and smooth fiber end faces:
a) perfectly perpendicular to the axis
b) Polished at a slight angle to prevent back reflections
Optical fiber receptacles:
An alternate arrangement consist of light sources and optical
fiber receptacles that are integrated within a transceiver
package.
Fiber connector from a cable is simply mated to the built in connector in the
transceiver package.
Commercially available configurations are the popular small form factor (SFF) and the
SFF pluggable (SFP) devices.
Photodiode, PIN, 1310/1550 nm, LC, SFP ,Transceiver, 155 Mb/s STM-1
SC or FC Receptacle
Power coupling from LED to graded-index fiber
rs
• Power coupled from the LED to the graded indexed fiber is2 given 2as
PLED ,Gin 2 Bo n r n2 rdr
2
0
rs
2
PLED , gin 2 Bo n r n rdr
2 2
2
2 Ps n1 1
2 2 r
s
0
2 a
2 s
r
2 Ps n1 1
2
2 a
2
n n
• If the medium between source and fiber is different from the core
material with refractive index n, the power coupled into the fiber will
be reduced by the factor
R
1
n1 n
2
n n
R 1
n1 n
Fiber-to-Fiber Joints
Interconnecting fibers in a fiber optic system is another very important
factor. These interconnects should be low-loss. These interconnects occur
at
• Optical source
• Photodetector
• Within the cable where two fibers are connected
• Intermediate point in a link where two cables are connected
• The optical power that can be coupled from one fiber to the other is
limited by the number of modes that can propagate in each fiber
• A fiber with 500 modes capacity connected with the fiber of 400 modes
capacity can only couple 80% of the power
• For a GIN fiber with core radius a, cladding index n2, k=2π/, and n(r) as
the variation in the core index profile, the total number of modes can be
found from the expression
5.18
continued
• Eq. 5.18 can be associated with the general local numerical aperture to
yield
Illustration:
• For step index fiber, the coupling efficiency is simply the ratio of the
common core area of the core end face area
continued
• For Graded Index Fiber the calculations for the power loss between two
identical fibers is more complex since n varies across the end face of the
core.
• The total power coupled in the common area is restricted by the NA of
the transmitting or receiving fiber at the point, depending which one is
smaller.
• If the end face of the GIN fiber is uniformly illuminated, the optical
power accepted by the core will be that power which falls within the NA
of the fiber.
• The optical power density p(r) at a point r on the fiber end is
proportional to the square of the local NA(r) at that point
Where NA(r) and NA(0) are defined by eqs. 2.80. p(0) is the power
density at the core axis which is related to the total power P in the fiber
by
We can use the parabolic index profile (α=2.0) for which p(r) will be givn
r 2
as
p r p 0 1
p(r) = p(0)[1 – {r/a}2 ]
P will be calculated as
P = (πa2 / 2) p(0)
a
The calculations of received power for GIN fiber can be carried out and the
result will be
• Highly smooth and perpendicular end faces can be produced through this
method
• Requires a careful control of the curvature and the tension
• Improperly controlled tension can cause multiple fracture and can leave a
lip or hackled portion
Fiber Splicing
Three different types of splicing can be done
• Fusion splicing
• V-groove mechanical splicing
• Elastic tube splice
Influences on Fusion Process
Self-Centering Effect
The self-centering effect is the tendency of the fiber to form a
homogeneous joint which is consequently free of misalignment as result
of the surface tension of the molten glass during the fusion bonding
process
Core Eccentricity
The end face quality of fibers to be fused directly influences the splice loss.
Thus when cleaving fibers for splicing, the end face of the fiber has to be
clean, unchipped, flat and perpendicular to the fiber axis
Influences on Fusion Process
Fiber Preparation Quality
Any damage to the unprotected glass of the fiber can produce micro cracks
causing the fiber to break during handling, splicing or storage
When electric arc melts the fibers, the glass tends to collapse inwards,
filling the gap
Electrode Condition
Coupling loss:
The connector assembly must maintain stringent alignment tolerances to
ensure low mating losses. The losses should be around 2 to 5 percent (0.1 to 0.2
dB) and must not change significantly during operation and after numerous
connects and disconnects.
Interchangeability:
Connectors of the same type must be compatible from one manufacturer to
another.
Ease of assembly:
A service technician should be able to install the connector in a field
environment, that is, in a location other than the connector attachment
factory.
Low environmental sensitivity:
Conditions such as temperature, dust, and moisture should have a small effect
on connector loss variations.
Ease of connection:
Except for certain unique applications, one should be able to mate and
disconnect the connector simply and by hand.
Types of fiber connectors
Basically there are four types of Fiber optic connectors:
Butt Joint.
Resilient ferrule.
Grooved plate hybrids.
Expanded beam.
Lets concentrate on Butt Joint and Expanded Beam.
Butt-joint connector:
The key components are a long, thin stainless steel, glass, ceramic, or
plastic cylinder, known as a ferrule, and a precision sleeve into which the
ferrule fits.
The center of the ferrule has a hole that precisely matches the size
of the fiber cladding diameter.
Connector components
Expanded beam connector :
Advantages:
• Connector is less dependent on lateral
alignments.
• Beam splitters and switches can be easily
inserted into expanded beam between fiber
ends.
Ferrule connector
Biconical connector
Expanded beam connector
Losses in Splices and Connectors
• Core – size mismatch
• Longitudinal gap separation
• Lateral core misalignment Intrinsic
• Angular misalignment joint
• NA mismatch loss loss
• Profile mismatch
• Improper fiber end preparation
Intrinsic coupling loss at fiber joints