What is plastic optical fiber? Plastic Optical Fiber (POF) is definitely an optical fiber which is made out of plastic. Because the late 1990s however, much higher-performance POF based on per fluorinated polymers has begun to appear available on the market. Plastic optical fibers are popular Nowadays.

Fiber technology is constantly on the become more flexible and less expensive. Plastic fiber optic cables are made from just one acrylic monofilament and are most efficient when used with visible red status indicator light sources. Plastic fibers are generally more cost effective than glass fiber optic cables and therefore are well suited for applications that need continuous flexing of the fiber. A wide range of fiber optic tips can be found.

In contrast, plastic optical fibers use harmless green or red light that is easily visible towards the eye. They may be safely installed in a house without risk to inquisitive children. A second advantage is their toughness. Plastic optical fibers tend to be thicker than glass optical fibers, a millimeter or more, and could be handled without special tools or techniques. You don’t have to be trained to handle and do the installation. You simply work with scissors, hook it up and it works.

In large-diameter optical fibers, 96% from the cross section is the core that enables the transmission of sunshine. Much like traditional glass optical fiber, POF transmits light with the core of the fiber. The core size POF is in some cases 100 times bigger than glass optical fiber.

plastic optical fiber optic cable

POF has been called the consumer optical fiber since the fiber and associated optical links, connectors, and installation are all inexpensive. The per fluorinated polymer fibers are generally employed for much higher-speed applications for example data center wiring and building LAN wiring. POF, using its large core, continues to be likely to function as the office and residential network media. Its large core permits the utilization of cheap injection-molded plastic connectors which can significantly lower the total link cost. But POF features its own problems. The most crucial obstacle is its high signal loss (attenuation). PMMA has been used because the light guiding core for commercially accessible step-index POF and PMMA’s attenuation is about 100 dB/km. This high attenuation significantly limits POF’s applications in data communication applying a lot more than 100m.

Here is the good news though. Developers have discovered that PF amorphous polymer based gradient-index plastic optical fibers get rid of the attenuation problem with PMMA based plastic fiber. They’ve developed PF-polymer based Gradient-Index (GI) POF with attenuation level of only 10 dB/km. According to theoretical calculation, PF-polymer based GI POF can achieve similar degree of attenuation as silica-based glass fiber of 0.3dB/km.

Having a optimized refractive-index profile within the PF-polymer based GI POF, a lot more than 10Gb/s data transmission speed can be achieved over 1km. This is the metrics of PF-polymer’s low intrinsic loss and low material dispersion. Coupled with this theoretically possible high bandwidth and occasional total link cost, PF-Polymer based gradient-index plastic optical fiber includes a huge potential in fiber optic data communication applications.

With really small diameter, the POF cable is simple to run along skirting boards, under carpets and around tight corners. It offers additional durability for uses in data communications, as well as decoration, illumination and industrial application. FiberStore can supply both simplex and duplex plastic optical fibers. Our standard color is black. Other colors are available upon request.

Source: FiberStore

Fiber optic patch cord is used to link different equipment components in a network, typically switch to switch connections, where fast efficient communication is needed. It may be terminated having a a few different connectors depending of the equipment requirements.

Fiber patch cords are occasionally called fiber jumpers and therefore are basically a length of fiber optic cable terminated with a suitable connector for the required installation. As previously described, fiber patch cables are commonly fitted with ST, SC, LC or MTRJ connectors. There are lots of types of fiber patch cords for different use. This article is about Mode Conditioning Patch Cord.

Mode Conditioning Patch Cords, also referred to as conditioned launch fiber cables, are utilized specifically in Gigabit Ethernet 1000Base-LX/LH applications where the objective is deploying new high-speed 1000Base-LX routers, switches, or optical transceivers within existing multimode system backbones. Mode conditioning patch cables are used in the 1300nm or 1310nm optical wavelength window, and cannot be utilized for 850nm short wavelength window such as 1000Base-SX. Also, any attempt to connect 1000Base-LX/LH equipment over short distances of multimode fiber without the use of mode conditioning fiber can lead to a higher bit error rate, and finally damage to the unit. Mode conditioning patch cord is made for Gigabit Ethernet multi-mode applications at 1300nm wavelength; the applying standard is IEEE 802.3z. All mode conditioning fiber optic patch cords are made with duplex cable; with a single mode to multi-mode offset fiber connection part in one of the two legs.

Mode Conditioning Patch Cord

Why do we need to use mode conditioning patch cable? The Gigabit Ethernet application standard requires the use of fiber optic light to offer the specified data transmitting rates. Usually people use long wave transceiver modules for Gigabit Ethernet. These modules have to operate both single mode and multi mode fibers. And as we all know, multi-mode fiber manufacturing techniques create index of refraction anomalies along the centerline of the multi-mode fiber core. When a highly concentrated single mode fiber optic light is sent into the center of the multi-mode fiberglass, the modes that propagate through the index of refraction anomalies disseminate over time causing modal dispersion. This effect is called differential mode delay. Differential mode delay results in reduced bandwidth over distance. By permitting the only mode laser launch to become offset from the center of the multi-mode fiber, the mode conditioning patch cord cuts down on the effect of such differential mode delay.

From the above descriptions we learn how to use such mode conditioning cables. When we use such mode conditioning fiber optic patch cords, we have to connect the yellow leg the colour of single mode to connect the transmit side from the equipment (single mode Gigabit transceiver) while we connect the orange leg the colour of multimode to the receive side (multimode Gigabit cable plant) .

Mode conditioning cables are usually utilized in pairs. This means that you will need a mode conditioning patch cable at each end to connect the gear towards the cable plant. So then these cables are usually ordered in even numbers. The typical reason someone may order one cable is so they may keep it as a spare. In case your gigabit LX switch comes with SC or LC connectors, make sure to connect the yellow leg (singlemode) from the cable towards the transmit side, and also the orange leg (multimode) towards the receive side of the equipment. It’s imperative this configuration be maintained on both ends. The swap of transmit and receive only works in the cable plant side. Mode conditioning fiber optic patch cord are utilized typically when you wish to run Gigabit Ethernet (LX) over some multi-mode fiber optic plant.

In FiberStore, mode conditioning cables are compliant with IEEE 802.3Z standard. FiberStore supplies mode conditioning patch cables with SC, ST, LC, MTRJ fiber optic connectors.

Source: FiberStore

Quality and significance of the fiber patch cable can be analyzed effortlessly if you are planning to figure out its characteristics thorough. You should make sure that you’re going to obtain such cords for your network which could provide benefits on long term basis and you should not get yourself stuck inside a series of complications.

Poor selection or selection of patch cables can be very problematic and you’ve got to go through odd consequences due to poor selection. Therefore, the significance of best quality can’t be neglected and for this purpose make sure that you will improvise a very good method in order to attain perfect cabling for the networks.

There are numerous cables which can be included in your considerations though when it comes to the very best cable you might not be able to find something better still than OM3 cable. If you are not interested in high speed networking you’ll be able to either get OM1 or OM2 but if your requirements of networking are very high then it continues to be recommended that you should be getting OM3. There are many benefits which may be attained with ease if you are going to get this particular cable. One of the leading advantages of this cabling is your data transmission rate can jump as much as 10GB and there won’t be any complications for you regarding reliability and performance. All you need to do would be to just look for a very good and reliable provider which could surely help you get this cabling setup effortlessly as well as your complete satisfaction continues to be guaranteed without any issues.

Compared to the single mode patch cable, OM1 and OM2 multi-mode fiber patch cables were considered to be very fine because of better capability to handle speed in addition to good stability of performance. However, as time is progressing the requirements of networking continues to be increased a lot and one may have to have more data transfer rate with this network which is not possible if you are using these cables. Therefore, something and vital is required in order to avoid numerous complications and one of the best methods which may be improvised for this function is to look upon internet.

There are many providers which are making themselves available through web and you may even but their products and add these to your shopping cart without going anywhere. This method can be really handy if you are looking for a very good cable having superb qualities and benefits. You will see just no issues to get superb results if you are going to get a excellent provider which could help you get the latest OM3 cables having Duplex Multi-mode ability. There are lots of those who are looking for long term benefits though they are not able to have them because of availability issues but if you are going to get cables from web providers then there won’t be any issues for you regarding availability. All you need to do would be to just look for a top notch provider which could allow you to get best cables effortlessly. You can have a look at their online galleries and discover the cable according to your preference as well as.

Once you are capable of finding one then your next thing would be to place your order and you can simply add the item in your shopping cart. Various good providers (for instance, FiberStore)are also offering shipping services so you’ll be capable of getting your product or service at the doorstep. There won’t be any complications for you to get everything based on your requirements, perceptions and expectations if you are planning to place your order from the very reliable and authenticated source. This requires special knowledge and guidance though you can improvise a depth search for it and you’ll surely find the best provider with ease.

Source: http://www.fiberstore.com/

In this modern world, fiber optics are gaining more and more popularity among the communication networks. They’re trusted in every kind of communication nowadays this special kind of cables are the back bone of each and every known network whether it’s telecommunication or live broadcasting Television channels. When bulk data transfer is needed then top end fiber communication is considered as the best choice. Nowadays of fiber data is transferred in the form of light pulses. It was small introduction, now we come towards fiber optic patch cables.

Fiber optic patch cable is a two-fiber cable that uses exactly the same connector type and optical fiber type because the optical fiber cabling that it is connected to. Sometimes we aslo refer to it as a fiber optic jumper. The terms fiber optic patch cable and fiber optic jumper are often interchanged but as it happens they are different. An area cable is really a two-fiber cable, however the term fiber optic jumper is usually used to describe a single-fiber cable.

Fiber jumper is defined in IEEE 802.3 as an optical jumper cable assembly used for bidirectional transmission and reception of information. A fiber jumper can be a single-fiber cable or a multi-fiber cable. The jumper cable attached to the source of light is known as the transmitter jumper. The fiber jumper cable attached to the fiber optic power meter is known as the receiver jumper. But you may also see these test fiber jumpers referred to as a reference jumper. However they are named, fiber jumpers are a critical a part of your fiber optic test equipment setup.

Fiber patch cables are like joints, these are used to join 2 kinds of optic cables in order to make a third connection out. The first thing that is most important, while choosing the patch cable is the compatibility of those patch cables with the original cable. When you purchase the wrong cable then, it won’t work. Second thing may be the rate of information transfer. Different types of these cables have different data transfer rate and when you need to join them through patch cables then you need to make sure that the information rate of patch cables should match the information rate of original cable if this doesn’t match then, you will see a lag in communication which could cause a delay or total loss of information.

There are some other advantages too. For instance they offer a very high-speed of information transfer. Fiber optic cables are made to possess a little more speed than usual fiber cables to complement what’s needed when they are adjusted towards the network. Another factor that is higher in such cables is band width. These offer a high bandwidth than normal fiber optic cables. Last but not the least is the security factor. These patches are made very secure to operate at any level which is nearly impossible to interrupt into them.

These are the best answer for your home communication needs. Whether you’ll need a high speed internet connection or else you wish to connect your TV with a satellite antenna. These patch cables would be best since you just need to bring them and fasten them with any place in the fiber network and they’ll fulfill all your needs. So I we do hope you will consider fiber patch cables for your home communication needs after reading a lot of advantages and also because I have installed them inside my own home. They’re little expensive but that comes with quality.

Source: http://www.fiberstore.com/

A fiber optic attenuator, also called an optical attenuator, simulates losing the could be caused by a long period of fiber. Typically, this device performs receiver testing. While an optical attenuator can simulate the optical loss of an extended period of fiber, it can’t accurately simulate the dispersion that would be caused by a long length of fiber.

Put it simply, for a fiber optic receiver, too much light can overload it and degrade the bit error ratio. In order to achieve the best bit error ratio (BER), the light power should be reduced. Fiber optic attenuators fit the requirement perfectly. This could happen when the transmitter delivers too much power for example once the transmitter is simply too near to the receiver.

How Does a Fiber Attenuator Work?

Attenuators are like your sunglasses, which absorbs the extra light energy and protect your eyes from being dazzled. Attenuators normally have a working wavelength range in which they absorb the sunshine energy equally.

An essential characteristic of a good fiber attenuator is that they should not reflect the light, instead, they should absorb the extra light without being damaged. Because the light power used in fiber optic communications are fairly low, they usually could be absorbed without noticeable damage to the attenuator itself.

Types of Optical Attenuators

Two types of fiber optic attenuators exist: fixed value attenuators and variable optical attenuators.

Fixed value attenuators have fixed values that are specified by decibels. Their applications include telecommunication networks, optical fiber test facility, Lan(LAN) and CATV systems. For instance, a -3dB attenuator should reduce concentration of the output by 3 dB(50%). Fixed value attenuator’s attenuation value can’t be varied. The attenuation is expressed in dB. The operating wavelength for optical attenuators ought to be specified for that rated attenuation, because optical attenuation of a material varies with wavelength. Fixed value attenuators are comprised of two big groups: In-line type and connector type. In-line type appears like an ordinary fiber patch cable; it has a fiber cable terminated with two connectors which you’ll specify types. Connector type attenuator looks like a bulk head fiber connector, it has a male end and a female end. It mates to regular connectors of the identical type for example FC, ST, SC and LC.

Variable optical attenuators come with a variety of designs. They’re general used for testing and measurement, but they also possess a wide usage in EDFAs for equalizing the sunshine power among different channels. One type of variable optical attenuator is made on the D-shaped fiber as a type of evanescent field device. If your bulk external material, whose refractive index is larger compared to mode effective index, replaces a part of the evanescent field reachable cladding, the mode can become leaky plus some from the optical power could be radiated. If the index from the external material could be changed with a controllable mean, with the effects for example thermo-optic, electro-optic, or acoustic-optic, a device with controllable attenuation is achievable.

Other types of variable optical attenuators include air gap, clip-on, 3-step and more.

Source: http://www.fiberstore.com/

There many uses for fiber optic cables and fiber patch cords so if you’re in an industry which makes use of fraxel treatments you with thankful to know there are lots of places online where one can visit get these cables at affordable prices. Searching on the internet you’ll find the thing you need and get plenty of cables and accessories that can make simpler and fulfill your primary objective.

Fiber optic cables and fiber optic patch cords represent an evolution of technology allowing people to accomplish stuff that they would not have access to been able to before technology was invented making readily available for a variety of projects. Here’s some useful information on fiber optic cables and fiber optic patch cords as well as their application.

Practical Applications

When it comes to the practical application, fiber optic cables and fiber optic patch cords have many different uses and therefore are reliable in several situations. This is in fact a really versatile technology and many great uses have been devised which have greatly benefited human civilization all over the world. Thanks to fraxel treatments that we are able to continually move ahead like a civilization and individuals.

One of the many applications of this technology is internal illumination during dentistry. This will make it a lot easier for that dentist and it is assistants to obtain the job finished having a greater degree of accuracy as well as in less time. Lots of people have benefited from this with no one can deny how useful this technology has been for dentists all over the world.

Fiber-optic technology has been important for image transfer devices such as in the case of televisions and other similar forms of technology. This has transformed the way people live by providing them with fast and accurate use of information via a very large number of mediums.

Fiber Optic Communications

The arrival of fiber optic communications thanks to fiber optic cables and fiber optic patch cords makes life much easier around the world in several ways. We can’t underestimate the significance of this technology and just how it’s played a job within the ever-increasing growth of civilization and technological progress.

In fact NASA even used fiber optic cables in the camcorders they sent the moon. This unique feat means lots of people to witness this historic event in history and marvel at use of human ingenuity in a practical application.

Telecommunication and Computer Networking

Fiber optic cables and fiber optic patch cords have been essential in the advent of telecommunication and computer networking. Thanks the fact that they are highly flexible and can be bundled as cables it has allowed the technology to advance to the level it’s achieved today and approaches true potential.

It is also useful for saving space in confined areas for example offices. It’s because the truth that they seem to fiber optic cable can carry much more data an electric cable. Because of this factor fiber optic cables have really contributed heavily to internetwork communications and efficient system relays allowing a larger degree of accuracy and efficiency.

Source: http://www.fiberstore.com/

The fiber optic amplifier plays a significant and key role within the enhancing the capacity for a communication system to deliver information. The light signals can be transmitted by the use of optical transmitters, optical receivers and optical fiber.

The optical amplifier is a device amplifying an optical signal directly, without the need to first convert it to an electrical signal. The most popular parameter of gain from it is bandwidth and noise performance. It’s compensation for the wakening of knowledge throughout the transmission, due to fiber optic attenuation. The wavelength and also the power of the input fiber signal are decided through the fans.

Fiber optic amplifier has industry’s highest color resolution and simple amplifier, and sensor setup will lead to enhanced stability for previously difficult detection applications. What is more, it can offer you very high-output powers with diffraction-limited beam quality when utilizing it. Its saturation characteristics have the ability to prevent any intersymbol interference so that it is vital for optical fiber communications. That fiber amplifiers are often operated in the strongly saturated regime enables the highest output power. The amplified spontaneous emission will affect its gain achievable. It’s important to safeguard a high-gain amplifier from the parasitic reflections, for the parasitic laser oscillation or perhaps to fiber will be damaged by these.

Optical amplifiers could be transferred in the forward direction, in the backward direction, or bidirectional. However, its direction from the pump wave won’t modify the small-signal gain, the ability efficiency of the saturated amplifier as well as the noise characteristics. Furthermore, the amplification of a weak signal-impulse in a monocentrics nonlinear medium could be allowed because of it. Along with the advancement of we’ve got the technology, the caliber of it’s been improved greatly that it is well-liked by many companies. Besides, there are all sorts of products on the market so the people might have more opportunities to pick one that’s ideal for their needs.

However, when it comes to choice for the fiber optic amplifier, the best solution is to figure out the best providers that focus on this type of products. Because the components of this kind of products are complex, and you’re simply unfamiliar with the related details about it. The professional providers can use their professional knowledge and lots of years of experiences to provide you with wise advice, which can help you make a right decision. Of course, some providers provides you with certain warranty so that you can take it to their company for repair when it reduces.

CATV EDFA is a type of fiber optic amplifier. It is used to increase the output power of the transmitter and prolong the signal transmission distance. It’s widely requested TV signals, video, telephone, and data long haul transmission. FiberStore provides high output power and low noise EDFA CATV Amplifiers with selection of output power from 14dBm to 27dBm to meet the requirements of a high-density solution for the large-scale distribution of broadband CATV video and knowledge signals to video overlay receivers in a FTTH/FTTP or PON system.

Source: http://www.fiberstore.com/

An optical switch developed at the Joint Quantum Institute (JQI) spurs the mark integration of photonics and electronics.

What, isn’t electronics adequate? Well, nothing travels faster than light, as well as in your time and effort to hurry in the processing andtransmission of knowledge, the combined use of photons along with electrons is desirable for developing a workable opto-electronic protocol. The JQI switch can steer a beam of light from one direction toanother in only 120 picoseconds, requiring hardly any power, no more than 90 atto joules. At the wavelength used, in the near infrared,this amounts to about 140 photons. This is actually the setup of a waveguide made from a photonic crystal, a great device put into the fiber optic transmission area.

A quantum dot is placed inside a tiny zone free from holes. Light is distributed into and from the waveguide via endcaps. If properly timed, a pump laser pulse allows probe pulse to exit the side. When the probe and pump beams are not aligned, the probe beam will exit the farend of the waveguide. The center piece of most electronic gear is the transistor, a solid-state component where a gate signal is used to a nearby tiny conducting pathway, thus switching on and off the passage of the information signal.

The analogous process in photonics would be a solid-state component which provides a gate, enabling or disabling the passage of light through a nearby waveguide, or as a router,for switching beams in different directions. Within the JQI experiment, prepared and conducted in the University of Maryland and at the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) by Edo Waks and his colleagues, an all-optical switch has been created utilizing a quantum dot placed in the resonant cavity. The dot, consisting of a nm-sized sandwich of the elements indium and arsenic, is so tiny that electrons moving inside can emit light at only discrete wavelengths, as though the dot were an atom. The quantum dot sits inside a photonic crystal, a material that has been tired of many tiny holes.

The holes preclude the passage of sunshine with the crystal except for a narrow wavelength range. Actually, the dot sits in the small hole-free arcade which acts just like a resonant cavity. When light travels on the nearby waveguide a lot of it gets into the cavity, where it interacts using the quantum dot. And it is this interaction which could transform the waveguide’s transmission properties. Although 140 photons are needed in the waveguide to create switching action,only about 6 photons actually are required to bring about modulationof the quantum dot, thus throwing the switch.

Previous optical switches happen to be able to work only by utilizing bulky nonlinear-crystals and high input power. The JQI switch, by comparison, achieves high-nonlinear interactions using a single quantum dot and very low power input. Switching required only 90 atto joules of power, some five times less than the very best previous reported device made at labs in Japan, which itself used 100 times less power than other all-optical switches. Japan switch, however, has the advantage of operating at room temperature, as the JQI switch needs a temperature close to 40 K.

Continuing our analogy with electronics: light traveling on the waveguide by means of an information-carrying beam could be switched from one direction to another using the presence of asecond pulse, a control beam. To steer the probe beam the side from the device, the slightly detuned pump beam needs toarrive simultaneously with the probe beam, that is on resonance with the dot. The dot lies just off the middle tabs on the waveguide, inside the cavity. The temperature from the quantum dot is tuned to become resonant using the cavity, leading to strong coupling. If the pump beam doesn’t reach the same time as the probe, the probe beam will exit in another direction.

Source: http://www.fiberstore.com/

So why do We Need a Fiber Optic Attenuator?

Bigger is much better, right? Or so many people believe. Beginners in fiber optic technology are often confused with why optic attenuators should reduce light intensity. Aren’t we using amplifiers to improve the signal electricity? The fact is that too much light can overload a fiber optic receiver. Optical fiber attenuators are needed when a transmitter delivers too much light, such as when a transmitter is very close to the receiver.

So how exactly does a Fiber Attenuator Work?

Attenuators usually works by absorbing the sunshine, such as a neutral density thin film filter. Or by scattering the sunshine such as an air gap. They should not reflect the light since that could cause unwanted back reflection within the fiber system. Another type of attenuator utilizes a length of high-loss optical fiber, that operates upon its input optical signal power level in such a way that it is output signal power level is less than the input level. The power reduction are done by such means as absorption, reflection, diffusion, scattering, deflection, diffraction, and dispersion, etc.

What’s the Most Important Feature Should a Fiber Attenuator Have?

The most crucial spec of an attenuator is its attenuation versus wavelength curve. Attenuators should have the same impact on all wavelengths used in the fiber system or at least as flat as possible. For instance, a 3dB attenuator at 1500nm should also lessen the concentration of light at 1550nm by 3dB or as close as possible, this is also true inside a WDM (Wavelength Division Multiplexing) system.

Different Types of Attenuators

There are two functional kinds of fiber attenuators: plug style (including bulkhead) and in-line. A plug style attenuator is utilized like a male-female connector where attenuation occurs inside the device, that’s, on the light path from one ferrule to another. Included in this are FC fiber optic attenuator, LC attenuator, SC attenuator, ST attenuator and much more. An in-line attenuator is connected to a transmission fiber by splicing its two pigtails.

The key of operation of attenuators are markedly different simply because they use various phenomena to lower the power of the propagating light. The easiest means would be to bend a fiber. Coil an area cable several times around a pencil while measuring the attenuation with a power meter, then tape this coil. Then you definitely got a primitive but working attenuator.

Most attenuators have fixed values which are specified by decibels (dB). They’re called fiber optic fixed attenuator. For instance, a -3dB attenuator should reduce intensity of the output by 3dB. Manufacturers use various light-absorbing material to attain well-controlled and stable attenuation. For instance, a fiber doped with a transition metal that absorbs light in a predictable way and disperses absorbed energy as a heat.

Variable optical attenuator is also available, but it is usually a precision instrument utilized in making measurements. From FiberStore, you can get the best Variable Attenuators Instrument.

Source: http://www.fiberstore.com/

In the fiber optic network which uses wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM) is used to remotely add, block, pass or redirect modulated light emissions-infrared and visible-within a range of wavelengths.

With ROADM devices, signal switching doesn’t need optical-to-electric and electric-to-optical conversions. Instead, outgoing light beams can be generated, incoming beams could be terminated or beams could be passed through the device unmodified. This is achieved through wavelength-selective switch (WSS) components within the device.

A ROADM allows remote configuration and reconfiguration of emissions; bandwidth could be assigned when needed and without interrupting concurrent traffic, and power balancing is automatic. Most ROADM devices use technologies according to first-generation, wavelength blocking (WB) or second generation, planar light-wave circuit (PLC) technology. Whenever a wavelength change is required inside a specific channel, these technologies filter light emissions, extract data and impress data onto another emission. This method is more streamlined using PLC technology.

The different switching technologies in ROADM devices include microelectronic mirrors, live view screen, thermo-optic and beam-steering switches in planar waveguide circuits, and tunable optical filters.

ROADM devices were initially used in long-haul DWDM equipment. By 2005, metropolitan networks began using ROADMs in reaction to increased interest in Ethernet, as well as high-speed data, audio and video services. Within the ensuing years, ROADM devices have brought bandwidth flexibility and operational efficiency to networks. ROADM-based networks are enabling an automated optical layer with dynamic multipoint connectivity, independent wavelength add-drop, remote bandwidth allocation that has been enhanced power management capabilities.

Combined with the benefits of ROADM comes the inevitable need for fiber optic testing that safeguards function and helps to make sure performance. Here are common testing-related challenges to consider in ROADM-based networks.

1. Increases both in insertion loss per node and insertion loss per channel

2. The need to measure optical loss per channel for multiple ROADM configurations

3. The necessity to measure optical signal-to-noise ratios utilizing a precise and repeatable method

4. The impact of possible bandwidth thinning, other changes to bandwidth, and dispersion, that is of particular concern in multiple cascaded devices and 40 Gbit/s systems

5. Compliance using the optical transport network (OTN) standard-ITU-T G.709 standard

Unlike the optical add-drop multiplexer, Capabilities of ROADM test equipment should encompass optical spectrum analysis (OSA), and OTN performance qualifiers for newly commissioned links, along with the transport layer and all ROADM-supported interfaces. Major manufacturers of OSA and related electronic test equipment include, FiberStore, Anritsu, Digital Lightwave, Exfo and JDSU Test.

Source: http://www.fiberstore.com/

Information available at our fingertips in form of digital data today has swelled up to levels which had never been before. At the same time, real time communication has exponentially increased to extremely high levels. A whole class of applications have emerged that demand for transmission of high-speed data.

Necessity may be the mother of invention – optical fiber networks have been invented and deployed to solve the problem of high volume data exchange. And multimode fiber patch cables have grown to be the very first choice one of the different connectors of the wired carriers with endpoint devices.

What are the speed-hungry and volume-hungry data centric applications that have created this entire demand? Some examples of those applications are the Internet, the local area multi-computer networks, the phone networks and the ATM networks. There are many more applications with intense hunger for fast communication resources. For those practical purposes, these communication channels need a high-speed network that can carry enormous volumes of data with minimal attenuation and extreme accuracy. The modern fiber optic cable technology provides exactly this sort of communication.

The multimode patch cables are used to connect this data transmitted over the network towards the devices that they target to cater. These patches may also be used to connect the two loose ends of two fiber optic cables. The patch cables have to be multimode when the requirement is to support multimode optical fibers.

What is a multimode cable poor fiber optics? A multimode is one in which multiple packets of data can be simultaneously carried across the wire. The result is that the network can carry numerous data packets at a instant of time. The multimode mainline network cables are usually short long since the target with these cables is to support high speed and high power multiuser systems in a localized sense. The patches are compatible with the network cables to enable the machine remain aligned with the network objectives. Consequently the multimode patches support multiple user applications transferring data simultaneously, as well as retain the qualities of standard single mode patches like the high network speed, low network hindrances and occasional external interferences.

It’s also interesting to note that the end point devices these patch cables connect can be heterogeneous in nature. The aperture the end point device requires and types of applications supported may be diverse. There exist several different kinds of multimode fiber patch cables you can use based upon the requirements. And depending upon the exact reason why you have to install the patch on your fiber optic network, you shall need to select your patch and go ahead with the required installation.

Source: http://www.fiberstore.com/

Optical fiber may be the medium of choice for high capacity digital transmission systems and speed local area network. Besides these applications, optical fiber is also used to transmit microwave signals for cable tv, cellular radio, WLAN and microwave antenna remoting. To deliver microwave over optical fiber, the microwave signal is converted into optical form in the input from the fiber and at the creation of the fiber, it’s converted back to electrical signal. The benefit of fiber transmission of microwave is reduced losses in accordance with metallic media (e.g. copper coaxial cable). This leads to longer transmission distance without signal amplification or utilization of repeaters.

There are two approaches to optical signal modulation and recovery. The very first type is IMDD (Intensity Modulation Direct Detection) and also the second type is Coherent Detection. In IMDD, the optical source intensity is modulated through the microwave signal and also the resulting intensity modulated signal passes through the optical fiber to a photodiode where the modulation microwave signal is converted to electrical domain. In Coherent Detection, the optical source is modulated in intensity, frequency or phase by the microwave signal. The modulated signal goes through the optical fiber towards the receiver where it is mixed with the creation of a local oscillator (LO) laser. The combined signal is converted to electrical domain using a photodiode. This produces an electric signal dedicated to the main difference frequency between the optical source and the LO laser (i.e. intermediate frequency). This signal is further processed to recuperate the analog microwave signal.

RFoG (Radio Frequency over Glass) is the cable operators’ implementation of microwave transmission over optical fiber where the coax portion of the HFC (Hybrid Fiber Coax) is substituted with a single fiber, passive optical network architecture (PON). RFoG allows cable operators to deploy fiber connectivity to customer premises (FTTP) while keeping its existing HFC and DOCSIS infrastructure. Such as the HFC architecture, video controllers and knowledge networking services are fed through a CMTS/edge router.

These electrical signals are then converted to optical and transported via a 1550 nm wavelength via a wavelength division multiplexer (WDM) and a passive optical splitter to a R-ONU (RFoG Optical Network Unit) located at the customer premises. R-ONUs terminate the fiber connection and convert the traffic to RF for delivery over the in-home network. Video traffic could be fed over coax to a set-top box, while voice and knowledge traffic could be delivered to an embedded multimedia terminal adapter (eMTA), The return path for voice, data, and video visitors are on the 1310 nm or 1590 nm wavelength to some return path receiver, which converts the optical signal to RF and feeds it back into the CMTS and video controller.

The benefit of radio-over-fiber technologies are that it centralizes the majority of the transceiver functionality by transmitting the microwave signals within their modulated format over fiber. This reduces the number of access suggests antennas with amplifiers and frequency converters. In-building passive picocell for GSM or UMTS is implemented using radio-over-fiber. Wireless base stations are located in a central communications room as well as their outputs/inputs fed through RF multiplexers to lasers/photodiodes contained within the optical transceiver hub. The modulated optical signals are linked to/from the remote antenna units (AUs) within the building using single-mode optical fiber. The bottom station utilizes a combined detector/optical modulator, that is directly coupled to the antenna, to ensure that no electrical amplification or any other processing is needed.

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The plastic optical fiber (POF) constituts that the optical fiber core and cladding are made of plastic material. Compared with large core diameter 50/125um and 62.5/125um quartz glass multimode fiber, plastic optical fiber core diameter is up to 200-1000um, while continuing to use without the optical fiber positioning sleeve cheap injection-molded plastic connector, even The fiber splice SMIC alignment generated the 30um deviation does not affect the coupling loss. It is plastic optical fiber structure gives the quick construction, connecting and low cost. In addition, the core diameter of 100um or larger and it is possible to eliminate noise in the the mold presence of the multimode fiber of quartz glass.

In recent years, Europe and Japan and other countries made important progress in the development of POF fiber. The development of plastic optical fiber, optical loss rate has dropped from 25 to 9 dB/km. Its wavelength has been extended to 870 microns (near infrared light), close to the practical level of the quartz glass fiber. United States developed a the PFX plastic series fiber has excellent anti-radiation performance. In addition, Boston, Massachusetts, fiber developed the Opti-Giga plastic optical fiber is compelling, it is not only lighter than glass, flexible better, lower cost, and data transmission speed of 3 megabits per second in the 100 meters . Such a fiber can also use the refraction of light or optical fibers within the jump way to achieve a higher transmission speed. Now the United States and Europe has plastic optical fiber used for short-distance transmission, such as automotive, medical equipment, copiers.

Japan attaches great importance to the application of plastic optical fiber, several years ago, NEC, Fujitsu, Sumitomo Electric Industries, Inc. 45 optical communications, multimedia products manufacturers jointly announced, will work together to achieve the plastic optical fiber have been successfully developed in Japan practical use. Plastic optical fiber production, Japan is also the worlds largest producers of plastic optical fiber, however, in Europe to promote the development of new applications of plastic optical fiber and fiber inspection standards. The second half of 2001, the European plastic optical fiber industrial development stage, this time to establish a new approach to development of the European plastic optical fiber test and measurement. The worlds first dedicated Plastic Optical Fiber Application Center (POFAC) in Nuremberg, Germany completed. Germany using plastic optical fiber has been developed multimedia bus system MOST (24Mbit/s), and several car manufacturers, the system has been incorporated into their products. BMW has created a record 100m plastic optical fiber in the new 7 series. Europe 2001 plastic fiber Symposium and European Fiber Communication Conference held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. German automotive industry not only to promote the application of plastic optical fiber, but also contributed to the establishment of the plastic optical fiber test and measurement standards.

Japan has also established a plastic optical fiber standards, but these standards to the European Community is invalid. Japanese Industrial Standards is given only for the standard of a new type of plastic optical fiber, a numerical aperture of 0.5, and only the 650nm wavelength. The standard does not mention the different excitation light conditions in the plastic optical fiber, there is no provision must be formed in the plastic optical fiber equilibrium mode distribution.

Plastic optical fiber, compared with the glass fiber, although the light-transmitting differential, light loss is large, the initial ships of 300 dB/km, the transmission optical narrow band (limited to the visible region), is that it is difficult to adapt to the needs of the multimedia communication network, but it has light and soft, flexural, impact strength, cheap, anti-radiation, easy to process and can be made (1 to 3 mm in diameter, in order to increase the light-angle, expand the scope of) a series of advantages, so favored. In addition, the light passes through the central portion of the plastic optical fiber diameter of about 1 mm, about 100 times larger than the glass fiber, and the connection between the fiber connection and personal computer terminal apparatus is very easy. Plastic optical fiber installation costs low, very simple installation can align the connector plug, this plug can be used existing technology to produce.

The plastic optical fiber as the ideal short-range communication network transmission medium, in the future family of intelligent, office automation, industrial control network. Car airborne communications network, has an important position in military communication network and multimedia equipment in the data transmission.

Using plastic optical fibers, we can realize the smart appliances (home PC, HDTV, phone, digital imaging equipment, home security equipment, air conditioning, refrigerator, sound system, kitchen appliances, etc.) networking, to reach home automation and remote control and management, improve quality of life; through plastic optical fiber, we can achieve office equipment, networking, computer networking can achieve parallel processing computer, high-speed transmission of data between office equipment can greatly improve the work efficiency, remote office?

Low-speed LAN 100Mbps data rate is less than the transmission within 100 meters of with SI index plastic optical fiber to achieve; within 150Mbps50 meters transmission used a small numerical aperture of POF achieve.

POF cable is available a wide range of applications in the manufacturing industry. Converter, POF connector with RS232, RS422, 100Mbps Ethernet, Token Ring and other standard protocols, resulting in harsh industrial manufacturing environments to provide a stable, reliable communication lines. Capable of high-speed transmission of industrial control signals and instructions, to avoid electromagnetic interference by using a metal cable lines lead to the risk of interruption of communication transmission.

With the development of science and technology, more and more fields of application of plastic optical fiber, the development of the market will be more and more broad. Abroad on the application and development of plastic optical fiber has been achieved greater results, and continue to increase applied research investment, South Korea, China and Taiwan manufacturers have begun to develop production, the industry should be on the plastic optical fiber of research and development to be closely watched.

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Fiber optic pigtail is a fiber cable end with fiber optic connectors at only either side of the cable while leaving sleep issues no connectors, so the connector side could be from the equipment and the other part can be melted with optical cable fibers.

Fiber optic pigtails are utilized to achieve accurate mounting for precision alignment of fiber optical components. They're usually used with fiber optic management equipment like ODF, splice closures and cross cabinets.

A fiber pigtail is really a single, short, usually unbuffered, optical fiber which has an optical connector pre-installed on one end along with a period of exposed fiber in the other end. The end of the pigtail is stripped and fusion spliced to a single fiber of a multi-fiber trunk. Splicing of pigtails to each fiber within the trunk "breaks out" the multi-fiber cable into its component fibers for connection to the end equipment.

Fiber pigtails can have female or male connectors. Female connectors might be mounted in a patch panel, often in pairs although single-fiber solutions exist, to allow them to be connected to endpoints or other fiber runs with patch fibers. Alternatively they can have male connectors and plug directly into an optical transceiver.

As the fibers must have connectors fitted before they can affix to other equipment. Fiber pigtails may be one of the common solutions for fiber cable termination, the inclusion of connectors to every optical fiber in a cable.

FiberStore supplies 10G 50/125, 62.5/125, 50/125 multimode optic pigtail with SC, ST, FC, LC MT-RJ, SC/APC, FC/APC, E2000 fiber optic connectors. Fan-out fiber optic pigtail is really a multi fiber cable assembly. It is almost always made from a multi fiber count cable, in the center of which we make use of the splitting kits to help make the fan-out pigtails. Such cable is usually 1XN structure, like MTP to 12 LC. Sometimes there's also NXN types, like 12LC to 12LC. Usually the simplex fiber optic pigtails that used inside management equipment use 0.9mm outer diameter cable. There is waterproof fiber optic pigtails employed for outdoor applications. This fiber optic pigtail is by using thick PE jacket and large diameter. For example, ribbon fan-out patch cord provides a stable and reliable connection for single mode fiber.

Fiber optic splitter (optical splitter) is also known as “non-wavelength selective optical branching device”. It is a fiber optic device used to achieve a particular band optical signal power splitter and redistribution.

Optical splitter can be used as a stand-alone device in the OLT node, the light distribution point and the FTTH point. It can also be placed in the central office wiring facilities, the light distribution points and FTTH points within the facility (integrated design or plug-in).

In accordance with the production process, optical splitters are divided into Fused Bi-conical Taper (FBT Splitter) and Planar Lightwave Circuit (PLC Splitter).

FBT Splitter (FBT Coupler)

Fused Bi-conical Taper technique is tied to two or more fibers, and then melted in a cone machine, pull tensile and real-time monitoring of changes in splitting ratio, the splitting ratio to meet the requirements after the end of the melt stretching, and wherein one end of a fiber optic reserved ( The remaining cut off) as the input terminal and the other end a multitude of road outputs. Mature tapering process can only pull 1 × 4. 1 × 4 or more devices, with a plurality of 1 × 2 connected together. Then the overall package in the splitter box.

Advantages
(1) pull taper coupler over twenty years of history and experience, many equipment and processes simply follow the only development funds only a few of the PLC tenth or hundredth of a few
(2) Raw materials only readily available quartz substrate, fiber optics, heat shrink tubing, stainless steel pipe and less plastic, a total of not more than $ 1. Investment in machinery and equipment depreciation costs less, 1 × 2,1 × 4 and other low-channel splitter low cost.
(3) splitting ratio can be real-time monitoring, you can create unequal splitter.

Disadvantages
(1) Loss of light sensitive wavelength ships according to the wavelength selection device, in this triple-play during use is a fatal defect, since the triple play of light transmitted signal 1310nm, 1490nm, 1550nm, and other multiple-wavelength signal.
(2) poor uniformity, 1×4 nominal about 1.5dB away, 1 × 8 or more away from larger, can not ensure uniform spectroscopic, which may affect the overall transmission distance.
(3) Insertion loss varies with temperature variation is greater (TDL)
(4) multi-demultiplexer (e.g., 1 × 16,1 × 32) volume is relatively large, the reliability will be reduced, the installation space is restricted.

PLC Splitter

Planar waveguide technology is the optical waveguide branching device with a semiconductor production process. The branching function is completed on the chip. On one chip to achieve up to 1X32 splitter, then, at both ends of the chip package input terminal and an output terminal respectively coupled multi-
Channel optical fiber array.

Advantages
(1) The loss of transmission is not sensitive to the wavelength of light, to meet the transmission needs of different wavelengths.
(2) spectroscopic uniform signal can be uniformly allocated to the user.
(3) compact structure, small size, can be installed directly in the existing junction box, no special design leave a lot of space for installation.
(4) only a single device shunt channel can achieve much more than 32 channels. (5) The multi-channel, low cost, stars ones more and more obvious cost advantages.

Disadvantages
(1) Device complex production process, high technical threshold, the chip is several foreign companies to monopolize domestic bulk package production companies only Borch rarely several.
(2) relative to the higher cost of Fused Splitter more at a disadvantage, especially in the low channel splitter.

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Variable optical attenuator (VOA) has a wide range of applications in optical communication, and its main function is to reduce or control the optical signal.

The basic characteristics of fiber optic network should be Variable, especially with the application of DWDM transmission systems and EDFA in optical communication, it must be carried out in a plurality of optical signal on the transmission channel gain flattening or equalization, channel power in the optical receiver. The side to be dynamic saturation control, optical networks also need to control for other signals, making the VOA become indispensable key components. In addition, VOA also can be combined with other optical communication components and this pushed itself to the characteristics of the high-level module.

In recent years, there appeared many technologies on manufacture of variable optical attenuator, including mechanical VOA, magneto-optical VOA, LCD VOA, MEMS VOA, thermo-optic VOA and acousto-optic VOA.

Mechanical VOA
The principle is to use a stepper motor drag neutral gradient filter, its output optical power at a predetermined attenuation rule change when the different positions of the light beam passes through the filter, so as to achieve the purpose of adjusting the amount of attenuation. There is also a mechanical polarized optical attenuator. Its basic principle is that the light beam emitted from the ingress port reflected by the reflection sheet to the port, the the reflector coupling efficiency between the two ports by the inclination angle of the reflection sheet to the control, enabling adjustment of the light attenuation. The inclination of the reflection sheet from a variety of different mechanisms to control. Mechanical type optical attenuator is more traditional solutions, so far, the VOA application in the system most used mechanical method to achieve attenuation. The type of optical attenuator with mature technology, optical properties, low insertion loss, polarization dependent loss, without temperature control, etc.; disadvantage is that the larger, more complex structure components, the response rate is not high, it is difficult to automate the production is not conducive to integration.

Magneto-optical VOA
Magneto-optical VOA is the use of some of the substances in the magnetic field is shown by the changes in optical properties, such as magnetic rotation effect (Faraday effect) can also be achieved attenuation of the light energy, so as to achieve the purpose of adjusting the optical signal. The magneto-optical effect of the material and in combination with other techniques, you can create a high performance, small size, high response and the structure is relatively simple optical attenuator. This is LLL device using discrete technology to produce the optical attenuator to be a further development of the field.

LCD VOA
Utilizing a liquid crystal refractive index anisotropy in the liquid crystal VOA shows birefringence. When an external electric field is applied, the orientation of the liquid crystal molecules are rearranged, will result in the change in its transmission characteristics. The type of attenuation can be achieved by light intensity change of the type of voltage control is applied to the two electrodes in the liquid crystal. The liquid crystal optical attenuator VOA can achieve the miniaturization and high response. But at the same time the liquid crystal material into a larger loss, the production process is relatively more complex, in particular, is influenced by environmental factors, its advantage is a low cost, there are commercial batch.

MEMS VOA
MEMS is the technology of the new applications in this area, After several years of development, the MEMS chip production process has become more mature, a strong impetus to the application of the MEMS optical attenuator. Optical network applications, MEMS technology-based products also have the obvious advantage on price and performance. MEMS VOA has been very mature, and mass production and large-scale application. Because of yield problems, in terms of price also facing challenges In addition, micro-electro-mechanical components, reliability is sometimes less than ideal. The early MEMS VOA using laser welding, into a larger device, and the production efficiency is low, and high assembly costs. Currently, the market also introduced a MEMS VOA plastic technology, a good solution to this problem.

Thermo-optic VOA
Thermo-optic VOA mainly using some of the material changes in the optical properties of temperature field characteristics, such as temperature changes caused by the thermo-optical refractive index change. According to the structure of the different, can be divided into two categories, leak-and open-light type VOA. Thermo-optic VOA due to heating, cooling device is relatively complex, a function of the mathematical relationship between the temperature field photoconductive medium refractive index is complex and difficult to accurately quantify and control, especially the longer response time hindered its application in modern optical communication .

Acousto-optic VOA
The basic principle is to use the cyclical strain, resulting in a periodic variation of the refractive index, equal to create a phase grating for the acousto-optical crystal in the generated under the action of ultrasonic waves, and so can be modulated using the raster beam. Some companies have already claimed to have developed the acousto-optical crystal variable attenuator (called the AVOA). It is understood that the acquisition of the acousto-optic crystal material is no problem, but at this stage of the total cost is high, about 4-5.

Conclusion:

Variable optical attenuator is one of important optical devices in the optical communication system. Over the years, it has been stuck at a mechanical level. Because its size is not conducive to integration, it is generally only suitable for single-channel attenuation. With the development of DWDM system, as well as market the flexibility to upgrade reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM) potentially huge demand, there need more channels and small size variable optical attenuator array, in particular the integrated VOA product. Traditional mechanical methods can not solve these problems. With the development of fiber optic network, VOAs development trends are: low cost, highly integrated, fast response time as well as integration of hybrid with other optical communication devices.

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