OCN/FON 18EC824/17EC82

Module 2
Transmission characteristics of optical fiber: Attenuation, Material absorption losses, Linear scattering
losses, Nonlinear scattering losses, Fiber bend loss, Dispersion, Chromatic dispersion, Intermodal dispersion:
Multimode step index fiber.
Optical fiber Connectors: Fiber alignment and joint loss, Fiber splices: Fusion Splices, Mechanical splices,
Fiber connectors: cylindrical ferrule connectors, Duplex and Multiple fiber connectors, Fiber couplers: three
and four port couplers, star couplers, optical isolators and circulators.

Transmission characteristics of optical fiber

Introduction
 One of the important properties of optical fiber- Signal Attenuation
 It is also called as fiber loss or signal loss.
 The signal attenuation of fiber determines the maximum distance between transmitter and receiver.
 It also determines the number of repeaters required.
 Another important property of optical fiber is distortion mechanism.
 As the signal pulse travels along the fiber length it becomes broader.
 After sufficient length the broad pulses starts overlapping with adjacent pulses. This creates error in
the receiver. Hence the distortion limits the information carrying capacity of the fiber.
 A number of mechanisms are responsible for the signal attenuation within the optical fiber.
 They are influenced by material composition, the preparation and purification techniques and the
waveguide structures.
 They may be categorized within several major areas which include material absorption, material
scattering (linear and non-linear scattering), curve and micro bending losses, mode coupling radiation
losses and losses due to leaky modes.
 Attenuation
 Material absorption losses (intrinsic and extrinsic absorption)
 Types of linear and non-linear scattering losses
 Fiber bending losses.
Attenuation
 Signal attenuation within optical fibers is expressed in the logarithmic unit of the decibel.
 The decibel, which is used for comparing two power levels, may be defined for a particular optical
wavelength as the ratio of the input (transmitted) optical power 𝑃𝑖 into a fiber to the output(received)
optical fiber 𝑃𝑜 from the fiber as:
𝑃𝑖
𝑁𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑑𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑠(𝑑𝐵) = 10𝑙𝑜𝑔10
𝑃𝑜
𝑃𝑖
= 10(𝑑𝐵 ⁄10)
𝑃𝑜
 In optical fiber communications the attenuation is usually expressed in decibels per unit length
(𝑑𝐵⁄𝑘𝑚) following;
𝑃𝑖
𝛼𝑑𝐵 𝐿 = 10𝑙𝑜𝑔10
𝑃𝑜
 Where 𝛼𝑑𝐵 is signal attenuation per unit length in decibels and L is the fiber length.

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Material absorption losses in silica glass fiber

 Absorption loss is related to the material composition and fabrication process of fiber.
 Absorption loss results in dissipation of some optical power as here in the fiber cable.
 Although glass fibers are extremely pure, some impurities still remain as residue after purification.
 The amount of absorption by these impurities depends on their concentration and light wavelength.
 Absorption is caused by three different mechanisms
 Absorption by atomic defects in glass composition
 Extrinsic absorption by impurity atoms in glass mats
 intrinsic absorption by basic constituent atom of fiber.
Absorption by Atomic defects:
 Atomic defects are imperfections in the atomic structure of the fiber materials such as missing
molecules, high density clusters of atom groups.
 These atomic losses are negligible compared with intrinsic and extrinsic losses.
 The absorption effect is most significant when the fiber is exposed to ionizing radiation in nuclear
reactor, medical therapies, space machines etc,
 The radiation damages the internal structure of fiber. The damages are proportional to the intensity of
ionizing particles.
 This results in increasing attenuation due to atomic defects and absorbing optical energy. The higher
the radiation intensity more the attenuation.
Intrinsic Absorption
 Intrinsic absorption occurs when material is in absolutely pure state, no density variation and in
homogeneities.
 Thus, intrinsic absorption sets the fundamental lower limit on absorption for any particular material.
 Intrinsic absorption results from electronic absorption bands in UV region and from atomic vibration
bands in the near infrared region.
 The electronic absorption bands are associated with the band gaps of amorphous glass materials.
 Absorption occurs when a photon interacts with an electron in the Valene band and excites it to a
higher energy level. UV absorption decays exponentially with increasing wavelength.
 In the IR region above 1.2µm the optical waveguide loss is determined by the presence of the OH ions
and inherent IR absorption of the constituent materials.
 The inherent IR absorption is due to interaction between the vibrating band and the electromagnetic
field of optical signal this results in transfer of energy from field to the band, thereby giving rise to
absorption, this is strong because of many bands present in the fiber.

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The attenuation spectra for the intrinsic loss mechanisms in pure 𝐺𝑒𝑂2 −𝑆𝑖𝑂2 glass is shown in the figure.
Extrinsic Absorption
 Extrinsic absorption occurs due to electronic transitions between the energy level and because of
charge transitions from one ion to another.
 A major source of attenuation is from transition of metal impurity ions such as iron, chromium, cobalt
and copper.
 These loses can be up to 1 to 10 dB/km. The effect of metallic impurities can be reduced by glass
refining techniques.
 Another major extrinsic loss is caused by absorption due to OH(Hydroxil) ions impurities dissolved in
glass.
 Vibrations occur at wavelengths between 2.7 and 4.2µm.

 The absorption peaks occur at 1400, 950 and 750nm. These are the first, second and third overtones
respectively.
Scattering Loss
 Scattering losses are caused by interaction of light with density fluctuations within a fiber.
 Density changes are produced when optical fibers are manufactured.
 During manufacturing, regions of higher and lower molecular density areas, relative to the average
density of the fiber, are created.

 Light travelling through the fiber interacts with the density areas then partially scattered in all
directions.
 There are two types of scattering losses.

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1. Linear Scattering loss

i. Rayleigh Scattering
ii. Mie Scattering
2. Non- Linear Scattering loss
i. Stimulated Brillouin scattering
ii. Stimulated Raman scattering
Linear Scattering Loss
Linear scattering mechanisms cause the transfer of some or all of the optical power contained within one
propagating mode linearly (proportionally to the mode power) into a different mode.
This process tends to result in attenuation of the transmitted light as the transfer may be to a leaky or radiation
mode which does not continue to propagate within the fiber core but is radiated from the fiber.
With all linear processes, there is no change of frequency on scattering.
Linear scattering may be categorized as:
 Rayleigh scattering
 Mie scattering
Rayleigh Scattering
 It is the dominant intrinsic loss mechanism in the low-absorption window between the ultraviolet and
infrared absorption tails.
 It results from inhomogeneities of a random nature occurring on a small scale compared with the
wavelength of light.
 These inhomogeneities manifest themselves as refractive index fluctuations and arise from density and
compositional variations which are frozen into the glass lattice on cooling.
 The compositional variations may be reduced by improved fabrication, but the index fluctuations
caused by the freezing-in of density inhomogeneities are fundamental and cannot be avoided.
 The scattering due to density fluctuations, which occur in all directions, produces an attenuation
proportional to 1/𝜆4
 Rayleigh Scattering coefficient for a single component glass is given by
8𝜋 3 8 2
𝛾𝑅 = 𝑛 𝑝 𝛽𝑐 𝐾𝑇𝐹
3𝜆4
p- average photo elastic coefficient
𝛽𝑐 - isothermal compressibility at a fictive temperature 𝑇𝐹
 The Rayleigh scattering co-efficient is related to the transmission loss factor as,
ℒ = exp⁡(−𝛾𝑅 𝐿)
Mie Scattering
 This linear scattering occurs at inhomogeneities which are comparable in size with the guided
wavelength.
 These result from the nonperfect cylindrical structures of the waveguide and may be caused by fiber
imperfections such as irregularities in the core-cladding interface, core-cladding refractive index
differences along the fiber length, diameter fluctuations, strains and bubbles.
 It is created mainly in the forward direction.
 Depending upon the fiber material, design and manufacture, Mie scattering can cause significant
losses.

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 The inhomogeneities may be reduced by

 Removing imperfections due to the glass manufacturing process.
 Carefully controlled extrusion and coating of the fiber.
 Increasing the fiber guidance by increasing the relative refractive index difference.
Non-Linear scattering loss
It occurs at high optical power levels.
This nonlinear scattering causes the optical power from one mode to be transferred in either the forward or
backward direction to the same, or other modes at a different frequency.
It depends critically upon the optical power density within the fiber and hence only becomes significant above
threshold power levels.
These scattering mechanisms in fact give optical gain but with a shift in frequency, thus contributing to
attenuation for light transmission at a specific wavelength.
The types of non-linear scattering loss:

 Stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS)

 Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS)
SBS and SRS are not usually observed in multimode fibers because their relatively large core diameters make
the threshold optical power levels extremely high.
Stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS)
 Stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) may be regarded as the modulation of light through thermal
molecular vibrations within the fiber.
 The scattered light appears as upper and lower sidebands which are separated from the incident light
by the modulation frequency.
 The incident photon in this scattering process produces a phonon of acoustic frequency as well as
scattered photon.
 This produces an optical frequency shift which varies with the scattering angle.
 The frequency shift is maximum in the backward direction, reducing to zero in the forward direction,
making SBS a mainly backward process.
 Brillouin scattering is only significant above a threshold power density which is given by;
𝑃𝐵 = 4.4 ∗ 10−3 𝑑 2 𝜆2 𝛼𝑑𝐵 𝑣 watts
Where d and 𝜆 ae the fiber core diameter and the operating wavelength, respectively both measured in
micrometres
𝛼𝑑𝐵 is the fiber attenuation in decibels per kilometre and 𝑣 is the source bandwidth in gigahertz

Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS)

 Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) is similar to SBS except that a high-frequency optical phonon
rather than an acoustic phonon is generated in the scattering process.
 It has an optical power threshold of up to three orders of magnitude higher than the Brillouin threshold
in a particular fiber.
 Threshold optical power for SRS 𝑃𝑅 in along single-mode fiber is given by;
𝑃𝑅 = 5.9 ∗ 10−2 𝑑 2 𝜆𝛼𝑑𝐵 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑡𝑠

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Fiber Bend Loss

The optical fibers suffer radiation losses at bends or curves on their paths.
This is due to the energy in the evanescent field at the bend exceeding the velocity of light in the cladding and
hence the guidance mechanism is inhibited, which causes the light energy to be radiated from the fiber.
The part of the mode which is on the outside of the bend (i.e., cladding) is required to travel faster than that
on the inside so that a wavefront perpendicular to the direction of propagation is maintained.

As this is not possible, the energy associated with this part of the mode is lost through radiation.
Radiation attenuation coefficient can be written in the form;
𝛼𝜏 = 𝑐1 exp⁡(−𝑐2 𝑅)
Where R is the radius of curvature of the fiber bend and 𝑐1 , 𝑐2 are constants which are independent of R
Large bending losses tend to occur in multimode fibers at a critical radius of curvature is given by;
3𝑛12 𝜆
𝑅𝑐 =
4𝜋(𝑛12 − 𝑛22 )
This equation suggests that macro bending loss can be reduced by;
a) Designing fibers with large relative refractive index differences.
b) Operating at the shortest wavelength possible.
Similarly, the critical radius of curvature for the single mode fibers can be given as;

20𝜆 𝜆 −3
𝑅𝑐𝑠 = 1 (2.748 − 0.996 )
𝜆𝑐
(𝑛1 − 𝑛2 )2
where 𝜆𝑐 is the cut-off wavelength for the single mode fibers.

Dispersion
Dispersion of the transmitted optical signal causes distortion for both digital and analog transmission along
optical fibers.
Optical fiber transmission which involves some form of digital modulation, then dispersion mechanisms
within the fiber cause broadening of the transmitted light pulses as they travel along the channel.
Each pulse broadens and overlaps with its neighbours, eventually becoming indistinguishable at the receiver
input. This effect is known as Intersymbol interference (ISI).

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Broadly, there are two types of dispersion

 Intramodal
 Intermodal

For no overlapping of light pulses down on an optical fiber link the digital bit rate 𝐵𝑇 must be less than the
reciprocal of the broadened (through dispersion) pulse duration (2𝜏).
1
𝐵𝑇 ≤
2𝜏
Another way by considering the light pulses at the output to have a Gaussian shape with an rms width of 𝜎
0.2
𝐵𝑇(𝑚𝑎𝑥) ≅ 𝑏𝑖𝑡 𝑠 −1
𝜎

Pulse broadening due to intermodal dispersion in each fiber type

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Chromatic Dispersion
Chromatic or intramodal dispersion may occur in all types of optical fibers and results from the finite spectral
linewidth of the optical source.
Since optical sources do not emit just a single frequency but a band of frequencies there may be propagation
delay differences between the different spectral components of the transmitted signal.
This causes broadening of each transmitted mode and hence intramodal dispersion.
The delay differences may be caused by the dispersive properties of the waveguide material (material
dispersion) and also the guidance effects within the fiber structure (waveguide dispersion).
Material Dispersion
 Pulse broadening due to material dispersion results from the different group velocities of the various
spectral components launched into the fiber from an optical source.
 It occurs when the phase velocity of a plane wave propagating in the dielectric medium varies non
linearly with wavelength.
 As material is said to exhibit material dispersion when the second differential of the refractive index
with respect to the wavelength is not zero (i.e., 𝑑 2 𝑛⁄𝑑𝜆2 )
Expression for pulse broadening
The pulse spread due to material dispersion may be obtained by considering the group delay in the optical
fiber which in the reciprocal of the group velocity.
The group delay is given by;
𝑑𝛽 1 𝑑𝑛1
𝜏𝑔 = = (𝑛1 − 𝜆 )
𝑑𝜔 𝑐 𝑑𝜆
The pulse delay 𝜏𝑚 due to material dispersion in a fiber of length L is
𝐿 𝑑𝑛1
𝜏𝑚 = (𝑛1 − 𝜆 )
𝑐 𝑑𝜆
For a source with rms spectral width 𝜎𝜆 and a mean wavelength 𝜆, the rms pulse broadening due to material
dispersion 𝜎𝑚 may be obtained from the expansion of above equation in a Taylor series about 𝜆 where;
𝑑𝜏𝑚 2𝑑 2 𝜏𝑚
𝜎𝑚 = 𝜎𝜆 + 𝜎𝜆 +⋯
𝑑𝜆 𝑑𝜆2
As the first term usually dominates, especially for sources operating over the 0.8 to 0.9µm wavelength range,
then;
𝑑𝜏𝑚
𝜎𝑚 = 𝜎𝜆 ……𝐴
𝑑𝜆
Hence the pulse spread may be evaluated by considering the dependence of 𝜏𝑚 on 𝜆.
𝑑𝜏𝑚 𝐿𝜆 𝑑𝑛1 𝑑 2 𝑛1 𝑑𝑛1
= [ − − ]
𝑑𝜆 𝑐 𝑑𝜆 𝑑𝜆2 𝑑𝜆

𝐿𝜆 𝑑 2 𝑛1
=− . ……𝐵
𝑐 𝑑𝜆2
Substituting the expression obtained in Eq.(B) into Eq.(A), the rms pulse broadening due to material dispersion
is given by,

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𝜎𝜆 𝐿 𝑑 2 𝑛1
𝜎𝑚 ≅ |𝜆 |
𝑐 𝑑𝜆2
Material dispersion parameter M which is defined as;
1 𝑑𝜏𝑚 𝜆 𝑑 2 𝑛1
𝑀= = | 2|
𝐿 𝑑𝜆 𝑐 𝑑𝜆

And it is expressed in terms of 𝑝𝑠 𝑛𝑚−1 𝑘𝑚−1 .

Waveguide Dispersion
 The waveguiding of the fiber may also create chromatic dispersion.
 This results from the variation in group velocity with wavelength for a particular mode.
 Considering the ray theory approach, it is equivalent to the angle between the ray and the fiber axis
varying with wavelength which subsequently leads to a variation in the transmission times for the rays,
and hence dispersion.
 For a single mode whose propagation constant is 𝛽, the fiber exhibits waveguide dispersion when
(𝑑 2 𝛽 )⁄(𝑑𝜆2 ) ≠ 0.
 Multimode fibers, where the majority of modes propagate far from cut-off, are almost free of
waveguide dispersion and it is generally negligible compared with material dispersion.
 The single mode fibers where the effects of different dispersion mechanisms are not easy to separate,
waveguide dispersion may be significant.
Intermodal Dispersion
Pulse broadening due to intermodal dispersion results from the propagation delay differences between modes
within a multimode fiber.
As the different modes that constitute a pulse in a multimode fiber travel along the channel at different group
velocities, the pulse width at the output is dependent upon the transmission times of the slowest and fastest
modes.
Multimode step index fibers exhibit a large amount of multimode dispersion which gives the greatest pulse
broadening.
Intermodal dispersion in multimode fibers may be reduced by adoption of an optimum refractive index profile
which is provided by the near-parabolic profile of most graded index fibers.
Under purely single mode operation there is no intermodal dispersion.
Intermodal dispersion in multimode step index fibers
Using the ray theory model, the fastest and slowest modes propagating in the step index fiber may be
represented by the axial ray and the extreme meridional rays.
The paths taken by these two rays in a perfectly structured step index fiber are shown in the figure.

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The delay difference between the two rays when traveling in the fiber core allows estimation of the pulse
broadening resulting from intermodal dispersion within the fiber.
As both the rays are traveling at the same velocity within the constant refractive index fiber core, then the
delay difference is directly related to their respective path lengths within the fiber.
The time taken by the axial ray to travel along a fiber of length L gives the minimum delay time;
𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝐿 𝐿𝑛1
𝑇𝑚𝑖𝑛 = = =
𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑐 ⁄𝑛1 𝑐
The meridional ray exhibits the maximum delay time
𝐿⁄cos 𝜃 𝐿𝑛1
𝑇𝑚𝑎𝑥 = =
𝑐 ⁄𝑛1 𝑐 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝜃
Using the Snell’s law at core-cladding interface,
𝑛2
sin ∅𝑐 = = cos 𝜃
𝑛1
𝐿𝑛12
𝑇𝑚𝑎𝑥 =
𝑐𝑛2
The delay difference between the extreme meridional ray and the axial ray may be obtained as;
𝐿𝑛12 𝐿𝑛1
𝛿𝑇𝑠 = 𝑇𝑚𝑎𝑥 − 𝑇𝑚𝑖𝑛 = −
𝑐𝑛2 𝑐
𝐿𝑛12 𝑛1 − 𝑛2
= ( )……A
𝑐𝑛2 𝑛1
𝐿𝑛12
= ∆
𝑐𝑛2
After rearranging Eq. A,
𝐿𝑛1 ∆ 𝐿𝑁𝐴2
𝛿𝑇𝑠 ≈ ≈
𝑐 2𝑛1 𝑐

When the optical input to the fiber is a pulse 𝑃𝑖 (𝑡) of a unit area as shown in the figure
𝜎𝑠2 = 𝑀2 − 𝑀1

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Where 𝑀1 is the first temporal moment which is equivalent to the mean value of the pulse and 𝑀2 is the second
temporal moment which is it equivalent to the mean square value of the pulse.
∞ ∞
𝑀1 = ∫−∞ 𝑡𝑃𝑖 (𝑡)𝑑𝑡 and 𝑀2 = ∫−∞ 𝑡 2 𝑃𝑖 (𝑡)𝑑𝑡

The mean value 𝑀1 for the unit input pulse is zero and assuming thus is maintained for the output pulse,
∞
𝜎𝑠2 = 𝑀2 = ∫−∞ 𝑡 2 𝑃𝑖 (𝑡)𝑑𝑡

Integrating over the limits of the input pulse,

𝛿𝑇𝑠 ⁄2 1 2
𝜎𝑠2 = ∫−𝛿𝑇𝑠 ⁄2 𝑡 𝑑𝑡
𝛿𝑇𝑠
1 𝛿𝑇𝑠 𝐿𝑛1 ∆
= ( )=
3 2 2√3𝑐

Optical fiber Connectors

Fiber alignment and joint loss:
 Optical fiber links, in common with any line communication system, have a requirement for both
jointing and termination of the transmission medium.
 When the two jointed fiber ends are smooth and perpendicular to the fiber axes, and the two fiber axes
are perfectly aligned, a small proportion of the light may be reflected back into the transmitting fiber
causing attenuation at the joint.
 This phenomenon, known as Fresnel reflection, is associated with the step changes in refractive index
at the jointed interface (i.e., glass–air–glass).
 The magnitude of this partial reflection of the light transmitted through the interface may be estimated
using the classical Fresnel formula for light of normal incidence and is given by;
𝑛1 − 𝑛 2
𝑟=( )
𝑛1 + 𝑛
where 𝑟 is the fraction of light reflected at a single interface,
𝑛1 is the refractive index of the fiber core
𝑛 is the refractive index of the medium between the two jointed fibers (i.e., for air 𝑛=1)
 The loss in decibels due to Fresnel reflection at a single interface is given by;
𝐿𝑜𝑠𝑠𝐹𝑟𝑒𝑠 = −10𝑙𝑜𝑔10 (1 − 𝑟) 𝑑𝐵
 Fresnel reflection is a significant loss at the fiber joint even though the connection is ideal.
 Fresnel reflection effect can be reduced by using index matching liquid in the gap between the fiber
joints.
 Fresnel reflection is the only possible source of optical loss at fiber joint. Greater source of loss
involves misalignment at fiber-to-fiber connection.
 Different core and/or cladding diameters
 Different numerical apertures and/on relative refractive index differences
 Different refractive index profiles
 Fiber faults (core elliptically, or core concentrically, etc.,)

 The losses caused by the above factors together with those of Fresnel reflection are usually referred to
as intrinsic joint losses.

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Multimode fiber joints

The lateral coupling efficiency for two similar step index fibers may be written as;
𝑛 2
16 ( 𝑛1 ) 1 𝑦 𝑦 𝑦 2 1⁄2
−1
𝜂𝑙𝑎𝑡 ≅ {2𝑐𝑜𝑠 ( ) − ( ) [1 − ( ) ] }
𝑛 4
[1 + ( 1 )] 𝜋 2𝑎 𝑎 2𝑎
𝑛
Where 𝑛1 is core refractive index, n is refractive index of the medium between the fiber, 𝑦 is the lateral offset
of the fiber core axis, a is the fiber core radius.
The lateral misalignment loss in decibels may be determined using;
𝐿𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑙𝑎𝑡 = −10𝑙𝑜𝑔10 𝜂𝑙𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝐵
Lateral misalignment loss dependent on the refractive index gradient 𝛼 for small lateral offset in multimode
graded index fibers is given by,

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2 𝑦 𝛼+2
𝐿𝑡 = ( )( ) 𝑓𝑜𝑟 0 ≤ 𝑦 ≤ 0.2𝑎
𝜋 𝑎 𝛼+1
Lateral coupling efficiency is given by,
𝜂𝑙𝑎𝑡 = 1 − 𝐿𝑡
The above equation can be utilized to obtain the lateral misalignment loss in decibels, with a parabolic
refractive index profile where 𝛼=2,
8 𝑦 𝑦
𝐿𝑡 = ( ) = 0.85 ( ) 𝑑𝐵
3𝜋 𝑎 𝑎

Single mode fiber joints

In the absence of angular misalignment, the lateral offset loss is given by,
𝑦 2
𝑇𝑙 = 2.17 ( ) dB
𝜔
where, 𝜔 is the normalized spot size of the fundamental mode.
Normalized spot size for HE mode can be obtained from,
−3
(0.65 + 1.62𝑉 2 + 2.88𝑉 −6 )
𝜔=𝑎
21⁄2
𝜔 is the normalized spot size, a fiber core radius, V is normalized frequency for the fiber
The insertion loss due to angular misalignment (in radians) at a joint in single mode is given by,
𝜃𝜔𝑛1 𝑉 2
𝑇𝑎 = 2.17 ( ) 𝑑𝐵
𝑎𝑁𝐴
Where, is the fiber core refractive index, NA is the numerical aperture of the fiber

Fiber Splices
A permanent joint formed between two individual optical fibers is known as fiber splice.
There are two methods to achieve fiber splicing. They are:
 Fusion Splicing or Welding
 Mechanical Splicing

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Fusion Splicing
 Fusion splicing is accomplished by applying localized heat at the interface between fiber ends.
 Fusion splicing of single fiber involves the heating of two prepared ends to their fusing point with the
application of sufficient axial pressure between two optical fibers.
 It is essential that fiber ends are adequately positioned and aligned in order to achieve good continuity
of the transmission medium at the junction point.
 Flame heating sources such as microplasma torches (argon and hydrogen) and oxhydric microburners
(oxygen, hydrogen and alcohol vapor) have been utilized with some success.
 However, the most widely used heating source is an electric arc. This technique offers advantages of
consistent, easily controlled heat with adaptability for use under field conditions.

Electric arc fusion splicing: an example of fusion splicing apparatus

Schematic illustration of the prefusion method for accurately splicing optical fibers
Figure shows a development of the basic arc fusion process which involves the rounding of the fiber ends with
a low-energy discharge before pressing the fibers together and fusing with a stronger arc. This technique,
known as prefusion, removes the requirement for fiber end preparation which has a distinct advantage in the
field environment.

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Self-alignment phenomenon which takes place during fusion splicing

Self-alignment is caused by surface tension effects between the two fiber ends during fusing.
Mean splice losses of only 0.06 dB have also been obtained with a fully automatic single mode fiber fusion
splicing machine.

Drawbacks of fusion splicing:

 The heat necessary to fuse the fibers may weaken the fiber in the vicinity of the splice.
 The tensile strength of the fused fiber may be as low as 30% of that of the uncoated fiber before fusion.
 The fiber fracture generally occurs in the heat affected zone adjacent to the fused joint.
 Heating and induced residential stresses due to changes in chemical composition.
 It is therefore necessary that the completed splice is packaged so as to reduce tensile loading upon the
fiber in the vicinity of the splice.
Mechanical Splicing
 A common method involves the use of an accurately produced rigid alignment tube into which the
prepared fiber ends are permanently bonded.
 Glass or ceramic capillary just larger than the fiber diameter is used.
 Transparent adhesive (e.g. epoxy resin) is injected through a transverse bore in the capillary to give
mechanical sealing and index matching of the splice.
 It tends to have insertion loss of 0.1 dB (ceramic capillary)

 Another mechanical splicing involves using a loose snug tube.

 It uses an oversized square-section metal tube which easily accepts the prepared fiber ends.
 Transparent adhesive is first inserted into the tube followed by the fibers.
 The splice is self-aligning when the fibers are curved in the same plane, forcing the fiber ends
simultaneously into the same corner of the tube.
 This leads to loss as less as 0.073 dB
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Most common technique involves the use of Grooves to secure the fibers to be joined
 V-Groove Splice
 Springroove Splice
V-Groove Splice
 This method utilizes a V-groove into which the two prepared fiber ends are pressed.
 The splice is made permanent by securing the fibers in the V-groove with epoxy resin.
 Joint insertion losses of around 0.1 dB is obtained
 V-groove splices formed by sandwiching the butted fiber ends between a V-groove glass substrate and
a flat glass retainer plate.
 This is proved in lab environment to have insertion loss as less as 0.01 dB.

Elastic tube or Elastometric Splice:

 It is a variant of V-groove technique.
 The device consists of two elastometric internal parts, one of which contains V-groove.
The outer sleeve holds the two elastic parts in compression to ensure alignment of the fibers in the V-groove.
Loss due to this splice is 0.12 dB or less. But commercially, it is represented as 0.25 dB.

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Springroove splice
It uses two cylindrical pins as alignment guide for the two prepared fiber ends.
An elastic element (a spring) is used to press the fibers into a groove and maintain the fiber end alignment.
The complete assembly was secured using a drop of epoxy resin.
Mean splice insertion losses of 0.05 dB.

Fiber Connectors
 These are removable joints which allow easy, fast, manual coupling and uncoupling of fibers.
 Fiber connectors have to,
 Provide optimum performance
 Avoid fiber ends from damaging due to moisture, dust.
 Must not get damaged due to connecting and disconnecting.
 Optical fiber connectors may be considered in three major areas,
 The fiber termination, which protects and locates the fiber ends
 The fiber end alignment to provide optimum optical coupling
 The outer shell, which maintains the connection and the fiber alignment, protects the fiber ends
from the environment and provides adequate strength at the joint.
 The fiber connectors can be divided into two main categories
 Butt-joined connectors: it relays upon alignment of two prepared fiber ends in close proximity
(butted) to each other so that their core axis is aligned.
 Expanded beam connectors: it uses lenses in order to expand/contract to match the fiber ends.
 The two types of Butt-joined connectors are,
 Cylindrical ferrule connectors
 Duplex and Multi-fiber connectors
Cylindrical ferrule connectors
 This is the simplest type of connector.

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 The two fibers to be connected are permanently bonded (with epoxy resin) in metal plugs known as
ferrules. These ferrules have an accurately drilled central hole in their end faces where the stripped (of
buffer coating) fiber is located.
 The two ferrules are placed in aligned sleeve using a retaining mechanism.

 Preparation of fiber end faces can be achieved by,

a) cleaving the fiber before insertion into the ferrule
b) inserting and bonding before cleaving the fiber close to the ferrule end face
c) using either (a) or (b) and polishing the fiber end face until it is flush with the end of the ferrule.
 The fiber alignment accuracy of the basic ferrule connector is largely dependent upon the ferrule hole
into which the fiber is inserted.
 Hence, some ferrule connectors have incorporated a watch jewel in the ferrule end face.
 The fiber is centered with respect to the ferrule through the watch jewel hole.
 With jeweled ferrule hole, the insertion losses in the range 1 to 2 dB.

ST series multimode fiber connector

Numerous cylindrical sleeve ferrule connectors are commercially available for both multimode and single-
mode fiber termination.
The most common design types are the straight tip (ST), the sub miniature assembly (SMA), the fiber
connector (FC), the miniature unit (MU), the subscriber connector (SC) and the D4 connector.
An example of an ST series multimode fiber connector is shown in Figure, which exhibits an optimized
cylindrical sleeve with a cross-section designed to expand uniformly when the ferrules are inserted.

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The straight ceramic ferrule may be observed in Figure which contrasts with the stepped ferrule (i.e., a ferrule
with a single step which reduces the diameter midway along its length) provided in the SMA connector design.
The average loss obtained using this connector with multimode graded index fiber (i.e., core/cladding:
62.5/125 μm) was 0.22 dB with less than 0.1 dB change in loss after 1000 reconnections.

Duplex and Multi-fiber connectors

The duplex fiber connector designs were developed to provide two-way communication.
The diagram shows an example media interface plug for a duplex fiber connector.
It comprises of two ST ferrules housed in a protective moulded shroud and exhibits an insertion loss of 0.6
dB.

Silicon chip arrays were suggested for the jointing of fiber ribbon cable for many years. However, difficulties
were experienced in the design of an appropriate coupler for the two arrays.
These problems were then largely overcome by the multiple-connector design shown in Figure (a) which
utilizes V grooved silicon chips.
In this connector, ribbon fibers were mounted and bonded into the V-grooves in order to form a plug together
with precision metal guiding rods and coil springs.
The fiber connections were then accomplished by butt jointing the two pairs of guiding rods in the slitted
sleeves located in the adaptor.

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The structure of a small plastic moulded single-mode 10-fifiber connector is shown in Figure (b).
It comprised two moulded ferrules with 10-fifiber ribbon cables which are accurately aligned by guide pins,
then held stable with a rectangular guide sleeve and a cramp spring.
90° bent fiber connector
The coupling of signals into optical fiber with a 90° bend is important when fiber is required to be housed in
a small space.
Figure (a) displays the structure for optical interconnection using a 90° bent fiber connector which comprises
two parts: namely, a lower body and an upper body to provide U- shaped grooves which support the optical
fibers.

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The connector facilitates four fiber connections using a single-layer structure. To achieve more
interconnections, it is possible to produce a multilayer connector employing a similar approach.
A multi-layered structure providing eight interconnections is illustrated in Figure (b).

Such single-layered or multi-layered fiber connectors oriented at 90° can also be very useful for implementing
optical printed circuit boards and in this function, they enable surface- or bottom-emitting/receiving devices
to be interfaced with the circuit board.
Expanded beam connectors
An alternative to connection via direct butt joints between optical fibers is offered by the principle of the
expanded beam.
Fiber connection utilizing this principle is illustrated in Figure, which shows a connector consisting of two
lenses for collimating and refocusing the light from one fiber into the other. The use of these interposed optics
makes the achievement of lateral alignment much less critical than with a butt-jointed fiber connector.

Two examples of lens-coupled expanded beam connectors are illustrated in Figure.

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The connector shown in Figure (a) utilized spherical micro lenses for beam expansion and reduction.
It exhibited average losses of 1 dB which were reduced to 0.7 dB with the application of an antireflection
coating on the lenses and the use of graded index fiber of 50 μm core diameter.
A similar configuration has been used for single-mode fiber connection in which the lenses have a 2.5 mm
diameter.
Figure (b) shows an expanded beam connector which employs a moulded spherical lens.
The fiber is positioned approximately at the focal length of the lens in order to obtain a collimated beam and
hence minimize lens-to-lens longitudinal misalignment effects.
A lens alignment sleeve is used to minimize the effects of angular misalignment which, together with a ferrule,
grommet, spring and external housing, provides the complete connector structure.
The repeatability of this relatively straightforward lens design was found to be good, incurring losses of around
0.7 dB.
Fiber Couplers
An optical fiber coupler is a device that distributes light from a main fiber into one or more branch fibers.
These devices are either used to divide or combine optical signals for application within optical fiber
information distribution systems including data buses, LANs, computer networks and telecommunication
access networks.
Optical fiber couplers are often passive devices in which the power transfer takes place either:
 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
 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).

Multiport optical fiber couplers can also be subdivided into the following three main groups.
 Three- and four-port 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: 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).

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Optical fiber coupler types and functions: (a) three-port couplers; (b) four-port coupler; (c) star coupler; (d)
wavelength division multiplexing and demultiplexing couplers
Three- and Four-port couplers
Several methods are employed to fabricate three- and four-port optical fiber couplers
 Lateral offset method
 Semi-transparent mirror method
 Using graded index (GRIN) –rod lens
 Fused biconical taper (FBT) technique.

Lateral offset method
 It involves the overlapping of the fiber end faces.
 Light from the input fiber is coupled to the output fibers according to the degree of overlap.
 The input power is distributed by appropriately controlling the lateral offset between the fibers.
 This method provides bidirectional capability.
 This method is much suitable for multimode step index fibers and incur higher losses.

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Semi-transparent mirror method

 It uses a beam splitter method using a semitransparent mirror.
 A partially reflecting surface is applied directly to the fiber end face cut at an angle of 45º to form a
thin-film beam splitter.
 The input power may be split in any desired ratio between the reflected and transmitted beams
depending upon the properties of the intervening mirror.
 Its typical losses lie in the range 1 dB to 2 dB.
 Using this technology both three- and four-port couplers with both multimode and single mode can be
fabricated.

Using GRIN-rod Lens

 A fast-growing category of optical fiber coupler is based on the use of micro-optic components.
 It utilizes the beam expansion and collimation properties of the GRIN-rod lens combined with
spherical retro-reflecting mirrors.
 Exhibits low insertion loss (typically less than 1 dB) and are insensitive to modal power distribution.

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Fused Biconical Taper (FBT) technique

In this method, the fibers are generally twisted together and then spot fused under tension such that the fused
section is elongated to form a biconical taper structure.
Optical power launched into the input fiber propagates in the form of guided core modes.

The higher order modes, however, leave the fiber core because of its reduced size in the tapered-down region
and are therefore guided as cladding modes.
These modes transfer back to guided core modes in the tapered-up region of the output fiber with an
approximately even distribution between the two fibers.
Often only a portion of the total power is coupled between the two fibers because only the higher order modes
take part in the process, the lower order modes generally remaining within the main fiber.
The various loss parameters associated with four-port couplers may be written down with reference to figure,
𝑃1
𝐸𝑥𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠 (𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑟 − 𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑟) = 10𝑙𝑜𝑔10 ( ) 𝑑𝐵
𝑃3 + 𝑃4
𝑃1
𝐼𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠(𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑠 1 𝑡𝑜 4) = 10𝑙𝑜𝑔10 ( ) 𝑑𝐵
𝑃4
The crosstalk which provides a measure of the directional isolation achieved by the device is the ratio of the
backscattered power received at the second input port to the input power. It is given by,

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𝑃2
𝐶𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑘(𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑟 − 𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑟) = ( ) 𝑑𝐵
𝑃1
The splitting or coupling ratio indicates the percentage division of optical power between the output ports,
𝑃3 𝑃3
𝑆𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑡 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 = [ ] 𝑋 100% = [1 + ] 𝑋 100%
𝑃3 + 𝑃4 𝑃4
Star Coupler
Star couplers distribute an optical signal from a single-input fiber to multiple-output fibers.
The two principal manufacturing techniques for producing multimode fiber star couplers
 Mixed- rod
 Fused biconical taper (FBT) star coupler
Mixed-rod
In mixed-rod method, a thin platelet of glass is employed, which effectively mixes the light from one fiber,
dividing it among the outgoing fibers.
This method is used to produce a transmissive star coupler or a reflective star coupler.
The typical insertion loss for an 8×8 mixed-rod transmissive star coupler with fiber pigtails is 1.25 dB with
port-t-port uniformity of ±0.7 𝑑𝐵.

Fused biconical taper (FBT) star coupler

Its working is same as previous case.
Thus, the fibers which constitute the star coupler are bundled, twisted, heated and pulled, to form the device
illustrated.

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The total associated with the star coupler comprises its theoretical splitting loss and excess loss.
The splitting loss is related to the number of output ports N following,
𝑆𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠(𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑟) = 10𝑙𝑜𝑔10 𝑁 (𝑑𝐵)
For a single input port and multiple output ports where j=1,N then excess loss is given by,
𝑃𝑖
𝐸𝑥𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠 (𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑟) = 10𝑙𝑜𝑔10 ( ) (𝑑𝐵)
∑𝑁
𝑗=1 𝑃𝑗

𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠 = 𝑠𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠 + 𝑒𝑥𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠

𝑃𝑖
𝐼𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠 = 10𝑙𝑜𝑔10 ( )
𝑃𝑜
Optical Isolators and Circulators
An optical isolator is a passive device which allows the flow of optical signal power in only one direction
preventing reflections in the backward direction.
Ideally, an optical isolator should transmit all the signal power in the desired forward direction. Material
imperfections in the isolator medium, do generate backward reflections.
Both the insertion loss and isolation determine the limitations for the device to transmit optical power from
one terminal to another.
Figure illustrates the basic function of an isolator where an incident optical signal is shown to be transmitted
through the device and then it appears at the output terminal.

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 Optical isolators can be implemented by using FBGs. These devices permit the optical signal to pass
through the isolator and propagate to the output terminal, or, alternatively, they reflect it backwards.
 Since FBGs are wavelength dependent then optical isolators can be designed to allow or block the
optical signal at a particular (or a range of) wavelength(s).
 The wavelength blocking feature makes the optical isolator a very attractive device for use with optical
amplifiers in order to protect them from backward reflections. The magneto-optic devices can be used
to function as isolators.
 Magneto-optic devices utilize the principle of Faraday rotation which relates the TM mode
characteristic and polarization state of an optical signal with its direction of propagation, according to
which the rotation of the plane of polarization is proportional to the intensity of the component of the
magnetic field in the direction of the optical signal.
 Thus, it is possible to block or divert an optical signal as desired using the magneto-optic properties of
the material. Magnetic oxide materials can be used in the fabrication of optical waveguides to construct
optical isolators, in particular by using photonic crystal waveguides.
Isolators can also be connected together to form multiport devices where, depending upon their isolation
characteristics, an optical signal can leave the device at an end terminal or it can continue to flow towards the
next connected isolator.
The resulting device is generally known as a circulator, taking its name from the path of the optical signal
which follows a closed loop or a circle.
Such a device is shown in Figure 5.46(b) where three isolators are interconnected to form a three-port device
which does not discard the backward reflections but directs them to another isolator.
Thus, the signal continues to travel from isolator 1 to isolator 2 and finally it terminates at the end terminal of
isolator 3.
In order to prevent the signal going back to the input port 1, no connection is usually permitted between port
3 and port 1.
When a signal is transmitted from port 1 to port 2, however, the device simultaneously allows another optical
signal to travel from port 2 to port 3.
A four-port optical circulator which operates in a similar manner to the three-port device but incorporates an
additional isolator is displayed in Figure 5.46(c).
Although it is also possible to produce a circulator with a larger number of ports, the device complexity
increases with increasing number of ports and therefore in practice only three- or four-port circulators have
proved useful for optical interconnection.
Commercially available optical circulators exhibit insertion losses around 1 dB and high isolation in the range
of 40 to 50 dB centered at signal wavelengths of 1.3 and 1.5 μm.

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