Fiber-optic cables A fiber-optic cable contains anywhere from a few to hundreds of optical fibers within a plastic casing. What is a fiber-optic network?
Fiber-optic internet Fios -- the most awarded network for internet service satisfaction over the past 10 years.
Definitions of terms related to fiber optics. Broadband Definition Broadband is the transmission of wide bandwidth data over a high speed internet connection. Learn more. Single mode fiber has a very thin core about microns in diameter while multimode fiber has a core diameter about 10 times of a single mode fiber. Generally, single mode optical fibers used in telecommunications operate at nm or nm wavelength while multimode fiber at nm and nm.
Compared with single mode fiber, multimode fiber has a limited transmission distance by model dispersion because it has a large core size and supports more than one light mode from OM1 to OM5. Single mode fiber is suitable for long distance applications such as km between buildings while multimode optical fiber is used in short distance transmission within buildings such as computer network linking.
From all the above, you may have a general understanding of what fiber optic cable is and its working theory. Light travels down a fiber optic cable by bouncing off the walls of the cable repeatedly. Each light particle photon bounces down the pipe with continued internal mirror-like reflection.
The light beam travels down the core of the cable. The core is the middle of the cable and the glass structure. The cladding is another layer of glass wrapped around the core. Cladding is there to keep the light signals inside the core. There are many types of fiber optic cables, often that end up in fiber optic cable assemblies to execute their function. Fiber optic cables carry light signals in modes. A mode is a path that the light beam follows when traveling down the fiber.
There are single mode and multimode fiber cables. Single mode fiber is the simplest structure. It contains a very thin core, and all signals travel straight down the middle without bouncing off the edges.
Single mode fiber optic cables are typically used for CATV, Internet, and telephone applications, where the signals are carried by single mode fibers wrapped into a bundle. Now, not all fiber optic cables are the same. There are several modes that help the light travel in different ways. Modes are just the path that a light beam tracks down the fiber.
One mode goes straight down the middle. Another may bounce down the fiber at narrow angles. Other modes bounce down the fiber at varying angles. The simplest type of fiber is the single-mode. The very thin core microns sends signals straight down the middle without bouncing off the cladding. Internet, cable TV, and telephone signals are most often transmitted by single-mode fibers, wrapped together into a huge bundle.
These cables can transmit information over 60 miles. Then we have the multi-mode cable. Every fiber in the multi-mode cable is nearly 10 times bigger than those in single-mode cables.
This allows light beams to travel through the core on different paths—multiple modes. The shortcoming of multi-mode fiber optic cables is that they can only send information over short distances. They are primarily used to link computer networks. Glass fibers are amazingly tough, considering that glass is a fragile material.
Most optical fibers are created by pulling a glass rod , heated to the melting point, with a diameter of a few centimeters and roughly 1 m length, into a thin fiber with a diameter of micrometers and a length of several kilometers. Each of these fibers is wound together with other, similar fibers to make a thicker strand. However, additional protection is often necessary when fibers are used in an environment where accessibility is open. While the bare glass fiber may have a typical diameter of micrometers, and the polymer buffer and jacket increase this to a few hundred micrometers, the total diameter of the fiber cable may be several millimeters.
This not only strengthens the cable, it also makes it easier for operators to recognize the fiber for ease of maintenance and repair.
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