OPTICAL FIBER BASIC

At its most basic level, transmitting information over metal conductors

(wires and cables) involves sending an electrical signal that varies in potential
difference (i.e. size) with time. This signal travels along the wires and is available
at the other end a short time later. Importantly, only one independent signal can
be carried by a wire pair at a time (ignoring bandwidth). In contrast, transmitting
information over optical fibers involves sending a light signal that varies in light
intensity with time. This signal travels through the core of the optical fiber and is
available at the other end a very short time later. Importantly, and in stark
contrast to wires, different signals can be carried in opposite directions along a
fiber without affecting each other (as long as their light intensities aren’t
extremely high). Optical fibers have several advantages and disadvantages when
compared to wires. For example, optical fibers can carry signals much further
without the need for regeneration. And, they have a much better strength-to-
weight ratio. However, optical fibers tend to be brittle, are difficult to join and
typically cost more. Optical fibers have such superior performance over wires in
terms of bandwidth that they have gone from laboratory experiments to
completely replacing wires for long, medium and many short haul
communications applications in only a few decades. In wires, different signals are
carried by different electrical frequencies. In fibers, a large number of different
signals can be carried by a single wavelength. Moreover, by utilizing light of
different wavelength (or color) the number of signals that can be transmitted by
an optical fiber can be further increased by at least 2 orders of magnitude. To
quantify this advantage, commercially available fiber optic communications
systems have bandwidths of terahertz (that is 1,000,000,000,000Hz) allowing up
to 500 million conversations to be simultaneously carried over a fiber and in both
directions! When the only data traffic in the past was occasional telephone
conversations and telegraphy, laying optical fiber would not have been
economically justified because of the relatively high component cost. However,
with the advent of computers and the requirement for high data transfer rates,
because of the relatively low bandwidth of wires and the resulting high ‘cost per
bit’, fiber communications with its very high bandwidth and thus low ‘cost per
bit’ has clear economic advantages. (The development actually happened the
other way around; compared to current fibers, optical fibers with modest
bandwidth were developed initially, bandwidth demands grew to fill the available
fiber bandwidth leading to the development of higher bandwidth fiber systems
which in turn facilitated the high data rates associated with the development of
the internet and high-speed video and computer data communication systems we
enjoy today.)

TOTAL INTERNAL REFLECTION

The result of passing light from one material with refractive index n1 to
another material with refractive index n2 by can be studied using Figure 1 below.
For this experiment, the first material is Perspex (which has a refractive index of
~1.49) and the second material is air (which has a refractive index of ~1.0) so the
following discussion explains what happens using these materials.

Figure 1 Reflection and refraction at the interface between two materials

It’s important to note that angles in optics are measured with respect to
the normal to a surface which is a line perpendicular to the surface of the
interface between the two materials as shown in Figure 1. In this figure, the
incident ray strikes the Perspex-air interface at an angle of θi. Two rays are
produced as a result of the interaction of the incident ray with the interface. The
first is a ray that remains within the Perspex and is reflected at an angle of θr with
respect to the normal. The second ray exits the Perspex and is refracted as it is
“transmitted” into the air. It does so at an angle of θt with respect to the normal.
The relationship between the angle of the incident and reflected rays is given by
the law of reflection:
 When passing from a material of high refractive index to low refractive
index (as is the case with our Perspex-air example discussed here), equation 2
shows that, as the incident angle increases, the transmitted beam angle increases
more rapidly. This continues until, at an incident angle known as the critical angle
(θc), the “transmitted” beam angle is theoretically 90°. In other words, incident
light that strikes the interface at the critical angle and is transmitted theoretically
travels along the interface between the two materials instead of passing through
from one to the other. In fact, this doesn’t actually occur because, as the incident
angle approaches the critical angle, an increasing amount of the incident light is
reflected, with a decreasing amount of the incident light transmitted across the
interface. By the time the critical angle is reached (and for all angles of incidence
greater than the critical angle) all incident light is reflected back into the higher
refractive index material (a property known as total internal reflection).

Importantly, total internal reflection is used to guide light along an optical

fiber. Looking at Figure 2 below which shows schematic diagrams of an optical
fiber, the refractive index of the core is greater than that of the cladding so light
that strikes the core-cladding interface at an angle greater than, or equal to, the
critical angle is reflected back into the fiber. This explains how the plastic fiber s
able to guide light from one end of the fiber to the other with only a small
amount of loss
 As a result of the critical angle for total internal reflection, light entering a
fiber outside the range corresponding to the critical angle is not guided by the
fiber. This gives rise to the acceptance angle θa of a fiber which is the maximum
entry angle for light to be guided by the fiber as shown in Figure 2. Similarly, light
exiting the fiber will form a cone of light up to but not exceeding the acceptance
angle of the fiber because all light that would exit with higher angles has escaped
into the cladding. The numerical aperture of a fiber, which is generally quoted in
preference to the acceptance angle, is related to the acceptance angle by the
equation:

LOSSESS IN OPTICAL FIBER

In a fiber optic network, attenuation refers to the reduction in the strength
of optical signals due to losses as the light travels from the transmitter to the
receiver. While there have been dramatic improvements in this regard since the
inception of fiber optic communications, attenuation is one of the main concerns
of fiber network designers because it affects the distance signals can travel
without the need for regeneration which remains one of the biggest capital costs
in long distance optical networks. Some of the main sources of attenuation in
fiber networks include: coupling losses when the light enters and leaves the fiber;
absorption losses as light is transmitted along the fiber; light leakage where the
fiber is bent sharply; attenuation as the signal passes through devices such as
filters and circulators; connector losses when the light passes through joins
between different fibers; losses due to defects such as those introduced during
manufacture or when two fibers are spliced together; and splitting losses that
occur when the light signal is split between different paths. Many losses are
wavelength dependent. Generally, a network engineer has to calculate the loss
for the most attenuated wavelength then deliberately reduce stronger
wavelength signals to prevent them from overwhelming the weaker wavelength
signals (this is particularly the case for systems employing fiber amplifiers). The
principal causes of loss in optical fiber networks are due to absorption,
scattering and reflection. Absorption refers to the loss of signal light due to
conversion to other forms of energy (typically heat) or other wavelengths. While
the fibers used in long and medium haul communications systems are constructed
from extremely high purity glass, every material absorbs some light. Even with the
very low absorption of infra-red light by pure silica, the losses become significant
due to the long distances involved. Furthermore, it is virtually impossible to
eliminate all the impurity atoms that absorb light as it travels along the core of
the fibers. Similarly, devices such as filters and circulators are not completely
transparent to the wavelengths employed in fiber communication systems, each
absorbing small amounts of signal light. Importantly, all of these sources of
absorption are strongly wavelength dependent. Scattering refers to the
redirection of light in all directions by atoms and defects that are of a size similar
to the wavelength of the light. (Scattering is responsible for the blue color of the
sky due to interaction of the light from the sun with oxygen and nitrogen
molecules. Shorter wavelengths generally scatter more than longer ones, which is
why the blue light from the sun is scattered while the green, yellow and red light
is largely unaffected.) In fibers, bubbles in the glass, impurity atoms, scratches or
dirt on the core-cladding interface or on the ends of fibers where the light
enters or leaves all give rise to light scattering. While some of the scattered light
will continue to be guided by the fiber to reach the detector, a significant portion
escapes into the fiber’s cladding.

RADIATION LOSS DUE TO BENDING

As explored in Experiment 2, light is guided along the cores of fibers by the
total internal reflection that occurs at the interface between the core and the
cladding. With reference to Figure 1 below, the refractive index of the cladding is
less than the refractive index of the core. As a result, when the light being guided
by the core of the fiber strikes the core-cladding interface at the point marked a
at an angle θi (measured from the normal to the interface) which is greater than
the critical angle θc, all of the light is totally internally reflected. However,
because of the change in apparent interface angle due to the bend in the fiber
between points a and b, the light strikes the interface at point b with an angle θi
which is less than the critical angle θc. As a result, not all of the light is reflected
back into the core; some light escapes into the cladding.

CONNECTOR LOSSES
As a result of the light guiding geometry of fibers, special components are
needed to connect two optical fibers together; it doesn't work to simply make
contact between any part of the fibers as can be done for electrical wires.
Because the light is guided only by the core of the fibers, light is lost during the
transfer from one fiber to another unless they are well aligned axially, particularly
for fibers with small diameter cores. Carefully designed connectors are needed to
achieve relatively low loss, temporary connections between fibers. Referring to
Figure 1 below, input signal light guided by the core of fiber 1 needs to traverse
the gap between the two fibers to be collected and guided by the core of fiber 2.
In practice, not all the light exiting the core of fiber 1 is captured and guided by
the core of fiber 2; some is lost for reasons including:
  misalignment between cores, differently shaped cores or a significant
gap between the fibers, all of which allow some light from the core of fiber 1 to
enter the cladding of fiber 2 (a)
 back reflections at the exit face of fiber 1 (b) and the entrance face of
fiber 2 (c) because of refractive index changes (between air and glass)
 dirt that tends to accumulate on the ends of fibers 1 and 2, absorbing or
scattering light (d)
 distortions in the ideally flat end faces of the fibers which refracts light at
angles that exceed the acceptance angle of fiber 2 (e)
 scratches with a size close to the wavelength of the light which result in
scattering (f)

OPTICAL COUPLERS
Like the connections between fibers, special components are needed to
split and combine signals in optical communications systems. To connect two
optical fibers together, it doesn't work to simply make contact between any part
of the fibers as can be done for electrical wires. Because the light is guided only by
the core of the fibers, no light is transferred from one fiber to another unless their
cores are axially aligned. This is especially true for fibers with small cores. As such,
carefully designed connectors are needed to achieve low loss connections
between fibers. To split a light signal carried by an optical fiber, light from the
input fiber has to be directed to the core of both output fibers, usually with a
predefined light intensity splitting ratio. Similarly, to combine two optical signals,
light from the core of both input fibers has to be guided to the core of the output
fiber. Splitting and combining light signals in optical fibers may be carried out by
a device known as a fiber optic coupler. Referring to Figure 1 below, light
injected into port A is split between ports C and D (though not necessarily
equally). Similarly, light injected into port B exits ports C and D while light injected
into ports C or D exit through ports A and B. Importantly, not all of the light
injected into port A appears at ports C and D. Some light is lost and some of the
signal is back-reflected to exit through ports A and B. This is true also of the other
ports when configured as inputs. In practice, fiber circulators are used in
preference to couplers because they have no splitting loss. In a 3-port circulator,
signal directed into port A exits B, signal directed into B exits C and signal directed
into C exits A. However, circulators can’t be easily constructed for plastic fiber.
With that said, both couplers and circulators are widely used in optical fiber
telecommunications. In particular, these devices are commonly used in
backbone architectures, signal streaming, power monitoring and the
combination of two or more frequency or time division multiplexed signals,
usually from physically separated sources.
POLARIZATION IN OPTICAL FIBER
Transverse waves, such as light, have an oscillation direction perpendicular
to the direction of travel of the wave. The direction of oscillation is known as the
polarization of the wave which, for light, refers to the orientation of the electric
field vector. If a light beam is unpolarized, the orientation of the photons making
up the beam is randomly oriented. A light beam is said to have linear
polarization if the electric field vector of all of the photons is oriented in a single
direction. On the other hand, a light beam is said to have circular or elliptical
polarization if, as a result of manipulation of the phase between photons of
different orientation, the polarization of light rotates as the wave travels.
Interestingly, ‘single’ mode fiber (that is, fiber having only one light path) carries
two linear polarization modes of light oriented at 90° to each other. If the core of
the fiber is perfectly circular, the energy of both modes is equal and light can be
coupled from one polarization to the other. So, even though the fiber may be
illuminated by light with a single polarization, after a length of fiber, both
polarization modes will be equally populated. Furthermore, if light can regularly
swap between polarizations in this manner, and the light travelling with different
polarizations travels at slightly different speeds (which is invariably the case due
to bending or random stresses introduced into the core during manufacture), the
bandwidth carrying capacity of the fiber is limited by polarization mode
dispersion due to interference between the beams carried by each polarization.
Note that this typically only affects the bit error rate of the fiber for relatively high
bandwidths, typically in excess of 2.5GHz. This effect may be overcome through
the use of polarization maintaining fiber which circumvents the polarization
mode dispersion mechanism. Some optical fiber components, such as optical
isolators, variable attenuators and circulators, may operate by employing the
polarization characteristics of light. An optical isolator, which typically comprises
a combination of polarizers and wave-plates, only allows light to pass in one
direction of travel. A variable attenuator, which can control the intensity of a light
signal by attenuating it, may work by placing an electric field across liquid crystal
to control the polarization rotation of an initially polarized light beam before
passing it through a polarizer; the amount of rotation of the light by the liquid
crystal determines the signal attenuation. Circulators manipulate the polarization
of the signal, for example through a combination of polarizers, walk-off crystals,
retardation wave plates and faraday rotators, so that (almost) all of the light
entering port 1 exits port 2, light entering port 2 exits port 3 and light entering
port 3 exits port 1. Conversely, the operation of some devices is impaired by
polarization effects. For example, semiconductor light amplifiers are polarization
dependent, amplifying light of different polarization by different amounts
(which is one of the reasons they are not as popular as fiber amplifiers). Some
types of coupler are polarization dependent which may be used to advantage to
split or combine polarized light signals with minimal loss or may be problematic
because the splitting ratio varies with uncontrolled polarization of the light.
More generally, the intensity of light reflected at a glancing angle by a refractive
index change (for example, at the core-cladding interface) is polarization
dependent. As a result, at bends in the fiber where light may be lost due to the
changing angle of reflection, the polarization state of the light affects the loss
which in turn leads to variable light loss as the (uncontrolled) polarization of the
signal light changes. It can also be seen by looking at the surface of roads or
ponds through Polaroid sunglasses; the amount of reflected light changes
noticeably when you tilt your head.) A polarizer is an optical component that
only allows light with one polarization to pass. In Figure 1 below, an unpolarized
light beam is first directed onto a vertically oriented polarizer so only vertically-
oriented polarized light emerges. The second polarizer is oriented horizontally, so
only the component of incident light with a horizontal polarization vector is
transmitted. As the light incident on the horizontal polarizer is vertically polarized,
in theory no light is transmitted by the second polarizer. (In practice, no polarizer
is perfect and so a little light is transmitted.)
Figure 2 below shows light with a circular or elliptical polarization discussed
earlier.

The intensity (I) of a beam of polarized light of incident intensity (Io)

transmitted by a perfect polarizer oriented at an angle θ to the angle of
polarization is given by Malus’ law:

A beam of unpolarized light can be thought of as containing a uniform

mixture of linear polarizations at all possible angles. Since the average value of
cos2 -θ is 0.5, 50% of an unpolarized light beam is transmitted by a polarizer.
Therefore, the vertically polarized beam in Figure 1 has half of the intensity of the
unpolarized incident beam. If such a polarized beam is then intersected by a
second polarizer oriented at an angle θ, the intensity of light emerging with its
polarization at an angle θ is given by Malus’ law.
Polaroid is the commercial name for the polarization sheet made from
stretched, iodine doped polyvinyl alcohol. For the type of sheet used to make the
polarizers, less than 1% of the unpolarized beam having light in the direction
perpendicular to the sheet’s polarization direction is transmitted while
approximately 40% of the unpolarized beam having light in the parallel direction
is transmitted. More expensive, typically wavelength sensitive, types of polarizers
transmit close to 50% of the perpendicularly polarized light. Interestingly, if a
polarizer oriented at 45° is placed between the crossed polarizers in Figure 1 (and
ignoring the attenuation in a real polarizer), cos2 (45°) or 50% of the vertically
polarized light is transmitted by the 45° polarizer. Of this, another 50% is
transmitted by the horizontal polarizer so that, theoretically, 12.5% of the
incident unpolarized beam is transmitted as opposed to the 0% that is transmitted
without the 45° polarizer.
Wave plates are another type of optical component that can be used to
manipulate the polarization of light. They are constructed from birefringent
materials (such as quartz or mica) for which the refractive index varies
depending on the polarization of the light being transmitted. To construct wave
plates, birefringent materials are cut so that the direction for the maximum and
minimum refractive indices (referred to as the “slow” and “fast” axes of the
materials respectively) are oriented perpendicular to each other and to the
normal to the face of the plate. As a result, one polarization of light passing
through the plate travels at a different speed to light of the perpendicular
polarization, producing differential retardation of the perpendicularly polarized
light to create a phase shift between the two and a change in the polarization
state of the transmitted light.
The most common wave plates are half and quarter-wave plates, which
introduce a phase change equivalent to half and a quarter of a wavelength,
respectively, between polarizations oriented with the wave plate axes. The
polarization change of transmitted light depends on the orientation of the plate
axes with respect to the polarization of the incident light. The polarization of a
linearly polarized beam of light is unaffected by passage through any wave plate
if the polarization is aligned with one of the axes of the wave plate.
For a half wave plate, if the polarization of the incident light isn’t aligned
with one of the axes the transmitted light remains linearly polarized but the
polarization direction is rotated. In particular, if the half wave plate is oriented at
an angle of 45° to the polarization, the polarization direction is rotated by 90°. For
a quarter-wave plate, when the polarization of the incident light is oriented at 45°
to the axes of the plate the beam emerges circularly polarized. (Other input
polarizations lead to elliptical polarization states.) Conversely, when circularly
polarized light passes through a quarter-wave plate it is converted into linearly
polarized light, oriented at an angle of 45° to the plates’ axes.
WAVELENGTH FILTERS
The information carrying capacity of an optical fiber may be multiplied
many times by carrying different signals using light of different wavelength (that
is, light of different colors). For example, an optical coupler can be used to
combine (that is, multiplex) a number of signals of different wavelength. At the
other end of the fiber, a wavelength filter can be used to isolate (that is,
demultiplex) a signal carried by light of a particular wavelength from a number
of signals carried by light made up of different wavelengths. The filter transmits
light in one wavelength band (specifically, the color of the light of the desired
signal) while absorbing light outside this range (rejecting the other signals). This
can be understood by examining the following graph in Figure 1 below which is a
plot of filter transmission and LED output as a function of wavelength for
hypothetical green and red filters (the solid lines). Overlaid on this is the signal
spectrum for green, yellow and red LED light sources (the dotted lines). Figure 1 It
can be seen that the green light falls in the middle of the transmission band of the
green filter and at the extreme edge of the red filter. Therefore, most of the
green light would be transmitted by the green filter and only a very small
amount of green light would be transmitted by the red filter. Similarly, for the
red light, the filter characteristics are such that most of the red light would be
transmitted by the red filter and only a very small amount of red light would be
transmitted by the green filter. As a result, these hypothetical red and green
filters could be used to extract the individual signals carried by red and green light
from a signal comprising a mixture of the red and green signals. Importantly,
Figure 1 above also demonstrates potential limitations of this method of
combining or multiplexing signals on a fiber. If another signal is carried by yellow
light and added to the red and green light signal mixture, it would be difficult to
use the hypothetical green filter of Figure 1 to isolate the green light signal
because of the yellow light signal’s overlap with the green filter. Enough of the
yellow light signal would pass through the green filter interfering with the
recovery of the green light signal. For the same reason, it would also be difficult to
use the hypothetical red filter of Figure 1 to isolate the red light signal. To
demultiplex the green, yellow and red signals without interference, a yellow
filter could be added and all three filters could have a much narrower
wavelength spread than those in Figure 1. For example, a green filter that only
transmitted light between 500 and 540nm, a yellow filter that only transmitted
light between 560 and 600nm and a red filter that only transmitted light
between 620 and 660nm would be suitable for isolating the hypothetical green,
yellow and red light signals.

FIBER OPTIC TWO-WAY COMMUNICATIONS

An interesting feature of optical fibers is that light traveling in one direction
is largely unaffected by light traveling in the opposite direction along the same
fiber. (Non-linear interactions can occur if the fiber is susceptible and the light
intensities are extremely high.) This makes sense when you think about it. If you
were to shine two torches at each other, their beams wouldn’t affect one
another. This contrasts with electrical signals traveling along an electrical
conductor (pair). With an attempted bi-directional electrical communications
system, the potential differences of the two signals add to, and subtract from, one
another losing the individuality of the signals. The only way of achieving
simultaneous bi-directional electrical communications on the same conductor
(pair) is to employ frequency division multiplexing. The ability of light signals to
travel in both directions along optical fibers without affecting each other allows us
to set up bi-directional communications on the one fiber. That said, the injection
and extraction of the signals at each end is involved because both ends of the
fiber must be connected to both a transmitter and a receiver. In
telecommunications, this is usually managed by a device called a circulator.
However, circulators are not available for plastic fiber systems. A cheaper
alternative is to use two optical couplers but the trade-offs includes increased
losses. Recall that an optical coupler is a 4-port device (and we have previously
labeled the ports alphabetically from A to D). Recall also that a signal injected in
to one port is literally split and becomes available on the two ports at the
opposite end of the coupler (though one port’s output is significantly stronger
than the other). For example, a signal injected in to port A is split between port D
(the strong path) and port C (the weak path). Importantly, the optical coupler is a
bi-directional device. So, a signal injected in to ports C or D is split between ports
A and B and this is true even if a signal is connected to ports A and/or B at the
same time. It’s this property that allows us to use optical couplers to implement
bi-directional fiber optic communications. Figure 1 below shows the basic
implementation of bi-directional fiber optic communications between two
stations using optical couplers (which, in low loss networks, would be replaced
with circulators).
 As you can see, the transmitter (Tx) of Station 1 is connected to the channel
via the weak path of its optical coupler (that is, from port B to D). This transmitted
signal is connected to the receiver (Rx) at Station 2 via the strong path of its
optical coupler (that is, from port B to C). At the same time, the transmitter of
Station 2 is connected to the channel via the weak path of its optical coupler (that
is, from port D to B) and this signal is directed to the Station 1 receiver via its
optical coupler’s its strong path (that is, from port D to A). The fact that half the
light is split off on each traverse through a coupler and that the two signals
travel through a weak path of one of the optical couplers accounts for most of
the losses involved in this method of injecting and extracting the signals
(compared with using circulators which have typical channel-to-channel losses
of less than 0.8dB). Also, recall from your investigations into the operation of the
Coupler, that a small amount of the light injected into a coupler is back-reflected
to the ports on the same end as the input. For example, a signal injected in to port
A results in a very small signal on the output of port B and A. This is responsible
for the creation of cross-talk.

WAVELENGTH DIVISION MULTIPLEXING

Wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) refers to a fiber
communications protocol in which a number of different channels can be
carried along the same fiber using light of different wavelengths (colors). Thus,
by using wavelengths with spacings of less than 1nm, over one hundred different
wavelength channels can be carried by a single optical fiber, providing overall
bandwidths in excess of 4THz. In such a system, each signal is converted into light
of the relevant wavelength using a separate (typically) laser diode source. Light
from all the sources is mixed and injected into a single fiber using a multiplexer
before being transmitted along the fiber to the destination. For each source an
optical receiver has to be set up at the destination to convert the light of the
relevant wavelength back into an electrical signal. However, as optical detectors
respond to light over a broad wavelength band, the light of each wavelength must
first be separated using a wavelength dependent demultiplexer before being
directed to the appropriate receiver. In commercial glass-fiber
telecommunications networks, wavelength sensitive add/drop multiplexers are
used to inject and extract light of a single wavelength from multi-wavelength
optical signals being transmitted by mode optical fibers. The intensity of light of
other wavelengths is largely unaffected so multiplexing and demultiplexing the
WDM signals can occur with relatively low loss. Through the use of infrared light
and ultra-low loss fiber, WDM signal transmission lengths in excess of 60 miles
(100 kilometers) have been realized. However, many communications distances
are far greater than this, so repeaters are needed. Wavelength division
multiplexing would not be economically feasible for long distance
communications if at each repeater it was necessary to demultiplex and convert
the individual channel signals into electrical signals for amplification and cleanup
before conversion back into signal light of different wavelength and re-
multiplexing onto a single fiber; the cost per bit would be too high. This problem
has been overcome through the use of the erbium doped fiber amplifier (EDFA),
which can simultaneously optically amplify light of different wavelengths
without having to extract the light from a fiber. In terms of multi-wavelength
signals, so long as the EDFA has enough optical pump energy available to it (from
a high powered laser, typically with a wavelength in the region of 980nm), it can
amplify as many optical signals as can be fitted within the wavelength bands
1525–1565nm (C band), or 1570–1610nm (L band). EDFAs are not completely
wavelength independent, which can be corrected through the use of
wavelength flattening components. Other optical in-fiber signal correction
devices have been developed to clean up the other forms of deterioration in fiber
optic signals resulting from transmission over long distances (such as chromatic
dispersion). WDM is now commonly used in fiber optic networks that require
large bandwidths, such as connections between busy exchanges and countries.
WDM can instead be modeled using two optical couplers and wavelength
(color) sensitive filters as shown in Figure 1 below. Figure 1 In this scheme a
transmitter emitting light of one wavelength, λ1 (~650nm, red), injects a signal on
Input 1 (I/P 1) into port B of the multiplexing (left hand) optical coupler. At the
same time, a transmitter emitting light with a different wavelength, λ2 (~520 nm,
green), injects a second signal on Input 2 (I/P 2) into port A of the multiplexing
optical coupler. Due to the coupler’s characteristics, the light of both
wavelengths, λ1 and λ2, emerges from both ports C and D of the multiplexing
coupler; both ports emit light carrying a mixture of the Input 1 (λ1 -red) and Input
2 (λ2 - green) signals. A fiber patch lead plugged into port D of the multiplexing
coupler therefore carries light of both wavelengths, or colors, to the
demultiplexing (right hand) coupler. This fiber represents the long-distance
communications link between the signal’s source and destination. The dual
wavelength light emerging from the fiber patch lead is injected into port A of the
demultiplexing coupler, which splits the light between ports C and D. Therefore,
some of the Input 1 signal carried by the red (λ1) light and some of Input 2 signal
carried by the green (λ2) light is emitted from both ports C and D of the
demultiplexing coupler. By connecting a filter designed to only pass light of
wavelength λ1 (red) to port C of the demultiplexing coupler, only the Input 1
signal light reaches the first receiver to be converted into an electrical signal on
Output 1 (O/P 1). Similarly, by connecting a filter designed to only pass light of
wavelength λ2 (green) to port D of the demultiplexing coupler, only the Input 2
signal light reaches the second receiver to be converted to an electrical signal on
Output 2 (O/P 2). This arrangement can therefore be seen to model a WDM
network.
FIBER OPTIC COMPONENTS (fundamental)
 Fiber couplers,
 WDMs,
 Combiner
 Circulators
 Optical switches
Additional Components
 Faraday mirrors and tools for polarization management allow the
polarization state of light travelling through the fiber to be altered
 Optical isolators are available to help protect sensitive laser sources and
components from back reflections.
 Fiber attenuators,
 Gain flattening filters,
 Fiber terminators
 End caps

Optical Isolator

An optical isolator is a passive magneto-optic device that only allows light

to travel in one direction. Isolators are used to protect a source from back
reflections or signals that may occur after the isolator. Back reflections can
damage a laser source or cause it to mode hop, amplitude modulate, or frequency
shift. In high-power applications, back reflections can cause instabilities and
power spikes.
 An isolator's function is based on the Faraday Effect. In 1842, Michael
Faraday discovered that the plane of polarized light rotates while transmitting
through glass (or other materials) that is exposed to a magnetic field. The
direction of rotation is dependent on the direction of the magnetic field and not
on the direction of light propagation; thus, the rotation is non-reciprocal.

An optical isolator consists of an input polarizer, a Faraday rotator with

magnet, and an output polarizer. The input polarizer works as a filter to allow only
linearly polarized light into the Faraday rotator. The Faraday element rotates the
input light's polarization by 45°, after which it exits through another linear
polarizer. The output light is now rotated by 45° with respect to the input signal.
In the reverse direction, the Faraday rotator continues to rotate the light's
polarization in the same direction that it did in the forward direction so that the
polarization of the light is now rotated 90° with respect to the input signal. This
light's polarization is now perpendicular to the transmission axis of the input
polarizer, and as a result, the energy is either reflected or absorbed depending on

the type of polarizer.

Polarization-Dependent Isolators

The Forward Mode

In this example, we will assume that the input polarizer's axis is vertical (0°
in Figure 2). Laser light, either polarized or unpolarized, enters the input polarizer
and becomes vertically polarized. The Faraday rotator will rotate the plane of
polarization (POP) by 45° in the positive direction. Finally, the light exits through
the output polarizer which has its axis at 45°. Therefore, the light leaves the
isolator with a POP of 45°.
 In a dual-stage isolator, the light exiting the output polarizer is sent through
a second Faraday rotator followed by an additional polarizer in order to achieve
greater isolation than a single-stage isolator.

The Reverse Mode

Light traveling backwards through the isolator will first enter the output
polarizer, which polarizes the light at 45° with respect to the input polarizer. It
then passes through the Faraday rotator rod, and the POP is rotated another 45°
in the positive direction. This results in a net rotation of 90° with respect to the
input polarizer, and thus, the POP is now perpendicular to the transmission axis of
the input polarizer. Hence, the light will either be reflected or absorbed.

Polarization-Independent Fiber Isolators

The Forward Mode

In a polarization independent fiber isolator, the incoming light is split into
two branches by a birefringent crystal (see Figure 3). A Faraday rotator and a half-
wave plate rotate the polarization of each branch before they encounter a second
birefringent crystal aligned to recombine the two beams.
 In a dual-stage isolator, the light then travels through an additional Faraday
rotator, half-wave plate, and birefringent beam displacer before reaching the
output collimating lens. This achieves greater isolation than the single-stage
design.

The Reverse Mode

Back-reflected light will encounter the second birefringent crystal and be
split into two beams with their polarizations aligned with the forward mode light.
The faraday rotator is a non-reciprocal rotator, so it will cancel out the rotation
introduced by the half wave plate for the reverse mode light. When the light
encounters the input birefringent beam displacer, it will be deflected away from
the collimating lens and into the walls of the isolator housing, preventing the
reverse mode from entering the input fiber.

Fiber Optic Couplers

Fiber optic couplers can either be passive or active devices.

Passive fiber optic couplers are said to be passive as no power is required for
operation. They are simple fiber optic components that are used to redirect light
waves. Passive couplers either use micro-lenses, graded-refractive-index (GRIN)
rods and beam splitters, optical mixers, or splice and fuse the core of the optical
fibers together.

Active fiber optic couplers require an external power source. They receive input
signal(s), and then use a combination of fiber optic detectors, optical-to-electrical
converters, and light sources to transmit fiber optic signals.
 Types
Types of fiber optic couplers include splitters, combiners, X-couplers, trees, and
stars, which all include single window, dual window, or wideband transmissions.

Fiber optic splitters take an optical signal and supply two outputs. They can
further be described as either Y-couplers or T-couplers.

 Y-couplers have equal power distribution, meaning that the two output signal
each receive half of the transmitted power.
 T-couplers have an uneven power distribution. The signal outputs still carrier
the same signal, however the power of one output is greater than the second
output.

Fiber optic combiners receive two signals and provide a single output. The output
signal is typically comprised of multiple wavelengths, due to the amount of
interference that occurs when attempting to combine two signals that share the
same wavelength.

X-couplers carry out the function of a splitter and combiner in one package. They
are a 2x2 coupler that combines the power of two signals and then divides the
signal between two outputs.

Star couplers have M inputs and N outputs (MxN). They are used to distribute the
power from all of the inputs to all outputs.
Tee couplers either have 1 input and M outputs (1xM) or N inputs and 1 output
(Nx1).

Mechanical Specifications
When specifying optical couplers you should consider the fiber optic cable,
the coupler type, signal wavelength, number of inputs and outputs, as well as
insertion loss, splitting ratio, and polarization dependent loss (PDL).

Fiber Optic Cable

Optical couplers support one of two cable types, single mode or

multimode, which will allow either single or multiple paths for light to travel
through the fiber respectively. Multimode cables limit the distance that the signal
can travel as multiple paths of transmission cause modes of light to disperse
limiting the transmission bandwidth. Multimode may be further classified as
being step-index or graded-index. Graded-index fibers have improved operational
characteristics; the refractive index gradient refracts separate modes of light
propagation towards the central core, limiting the dispersion rate.

Number of Inputs and Outputs

Optical couplers can be specified by the number of ports used for signal
transmissions going in as well as out. The number and type of ports will be used
to describe whether the device is in a splitter, combiner, X-coupler, star or tree
coupler.

Coupler Type

Optical couplers should be selected based on the bandwidth or window.

Regardless of the port types used, fiber optic couplers can be designed for single
window, dual wavelength or wideband transmissions.
 Single window couplers are designed for a single wavelength with a narrow
wavelength window.
 Dual wavelength couplers are designed for two wavelengths with a wide
wavelength window for each.
 Wideband couplers are designed for a single wavelength with a wider
wavelength window.

Wavelength

The electromagnetic spectrum encompasses all frequencies and

wavelengths of light. The visible spectrum is a finite range of wavelengths that
can be detected by the human eye. Fiber optic couplers transmit light waves from
the far visible region, red (630nm), to the near infrared region (1700nm). Within
this region-specific frequency bands are used as to avoid absorption bands within
the carrier medium, the optical fiber. Wavelength choices for fiber optic couplers
include 633 nm, 830 nm, 1060 nm, 1300 nm, and 1550 nm.

Insertion Loss

Fiber optic components disrupt signal transmissions as the continuous core

of the optical fiber carrying the signal mates with the component in a manner that
causes some amount of scattering and reflection of light waves. The degree to
which the signal has been depleted is described as insertion loss, which is the
undesired attenuation of the signal measured in decibels (dB).

Splitting Ratio

The splitting ratio is the distribution of power among the output fibers of a
coupler; it is also referred to as the coupling ratio. A splitting ratio of 50/50 means
that there is an equal distribution of optical power; a 60/40 ratio means 60% of
the power is transmitted to a primary output and 40% to the secondary output.

Polarization Dependent Loss (PDL)

The polarization dependent losses are defined as the attenuation caused by

polarization.

OPTICAL FIBER CIRCULATORS

Applications

 Add-Drop Multiplexing
 Fiber Sensors
 Bidirectional Pumping
 Bidirectional Signal Transmission Systems
 Coupling In-Line Chromatic Dispersion Compensation Devices

Single Mode (SM) Optic Circulators are non-reciprocating, one directional,

three-port devices that are used in a wide range of optical setups and for
numerous applications. SM optical circulators have a center wavelength of 1064,
1310 (O-Band), or 1550 nm (C-Band).
 Circulator used to drop an optical channel from a DWDM system using a Fiber Bragg Grating.

An optical circulator is analogous to an electronic circulator and both

perform similar functions. An optical circulator is a three-port device that allows
light to travel in only one direction. A signal entering to Port 1 will exit Port 2 with
minimal loss, while a signal entering Port 2 will exit Port 3 with minimal loss. Light
entering port 2 experiences a large amount of loss at port 1, and light entering
port 3 experiences a large amount of loss at ports 2 and 1. Optical circulators are
non-reciprocal devices. This means that any changes in the properties of the light
caused by passing through the device are not reversed by traveling in the
opposite direction.

Because of its high isolation and low insertion loss, optical circulators are
widely used in advanced communication systems as add-drop multiplexers, bi-
directional pumps, and chromatic dispersion compensation devices.

Circulators can be used to send optical signals through a single fiber in two directions.
 The example to the left depicts the use of a circulator to drop an optical
channel from a DWDM system using a Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG). The input
DWDM channels are coupled into Port 1 of the device with a FBG device
connected to Port 2. The single wavelength reflected from the FBG then reenters
the circulator in port 2 and is routed accordingly to Port 3. The remaining signals
pass through the FBG and exit on the top fiber.

Circulators can also be used to send optical signal in two directions down a
single fiber. A circulator is located at both ends of the fiber. Each circulator
functions to add a signal in one direction while removing the signal in the other.

Single Mode Fiber Optic Circulators

Polarization-Maintaining Fiber Optic Circulators

Polarization-Maintaining (PM) Optic Circulators are non-reciprocating,

unidirectional, three-port devices that are used in a wide range of optical setups.
Available with a center wavelength of 1064, 1310 (O-Band), or 1550 nm (C-Band),
these circulators are fast axis blocked and hence are designed to work with light
that is launched into the slow axis.
Wideband Multimode Circulators

A WMC can function as a circulator or a combiner with much better

isolation/directivity from ports 2 and 3 than a coupler. This three-port device
allows light incident on port 1 to travel in only one direction (transfer), while
allowing bi-directional travel between ports 2 and 3 (transmission). A signal
entering port 1 will exit port 2 with minimal loss, while a signal entering port 2 or
port 3 will exit port 3 or port 2, respectively. Light entering either port 2 or port 3
experiences a high amount of isolation or directivity, respectively, towards port 1.

A single WMC can be used to combine two sources.

These WMCs maintain high signal powers for optogenetics, where activation
sources can be isolated from a return signal by a filter.

Due to the mode insensitivity of these WMCs, a single mode laser source
launched into port 1 can produce illumination at port 2 with similar beam profile
and insertion loss to an equilibrium modal distribution (EMD) multimode source.
Except for speckle, the power distribution will be equivalent. As such, a variety of
sources can be launched into port 1 using any optical fibers with an equivalent or
smaller core size and/or NA to the WMC. A comparison of the far field output
profiles produced by launching an EMD source or a 632 nm source into port 1 of a
WMC is shown in the image to the right.

Far Field Images of Output from WMC1H1F Circulator with

EMD Source (Left) or 632 nm Laser (Right)

Cladding Modes
While most light in a multimode fiber is guided via TIR within the core of the
fiber, higher-order modes that guide light within both the core and cladding layer,
because of TIR at the cladding and coating/buffer interface, can also exist. This
results in what is known as a cladding mode. An example of this can be seen in
the beam profile measurement to the right, which shows cladding modes with
a higher intensity in the cladding than in the core of the fiber. These modes can
be non-propagating (i.e., they do not fulfill the conditions for TIR) or they can
propagate over a significant length of fiber. Because cladding modes are typically
higher-order, they are a source of loss in the presence of fiber bending and
microbending defects. Cladding modes are also lost when connecting two fibers
via connectors as they cannot be easily coupled between optical fibers.

Cladding modes may be undesired for some applications (e.g., launching into
free space) because of their effect on the beam spatial profile. Over long fiber
lengths, these modes will naturally attenuate. For short fiber lengths (<10 m), one
method for removing cladding modes from a fiber is to use a mandrel wrap at a
radius that removes cladding modes while keeping the desired propagating
modes.
Launch Conditions

Underfilled Launch Condition

For a large multimode fiber which accepts light over a wide NA, the condition
of the light (e.g., source type, beam diameter, NA) coupled into the fiber can have
a significant effect on performance. An underfilled launch condition occurs when
the beam diameter and NA of light at the coupling interface are smaller than the
core diameter and NA of the fiber. A common example of this is launching a laser
source into a large multimode fiber. As seen in the diagram and beam profile
measurement below, underfilled launches tend to concentrate light spatially in
the center of the fiber, filling lower-order modes preferentially over higher-order
modes. As a result, they are less sensitive to macrobend losses and do not have
cladding modes. The measured insertion loss for an underfilled launch tends to be
lower than typical, with a higher power density in the core of the fiber.

Diagram illustrating an underfilled launch condition (left) and a beam profile measurement using
a FT200EMT multimode fiber (right).

Overfilled Launch Condition

Overfilled launches are defined by situations where the beam diameter and
NA at the coupling interface are larger than the core diameter and NA of the fiber.
One method to achieve this is by launching light from an LED source into a small
multimode fiber. An overfilled launch completely exposes the fiber core and some
of the cladding to light, enabling the filling of lower- and higher-order modes
equally (as seen in the images below) and increasing the likelihood of coupling
into cladding modes of the fiber. This increased percentage of higher-order
modes means that overfilled fibers are more sensitive to bending loss. The
measured insertion loss for an overfilled launch tends to be higher than typical,
but results in an overall higher output power compared to an underfilled fiber
launch.
 e
Diagram illustrating an overfilled launch condition (left) and a beam profile measurement using
a FT200EMT multimode fiber (right).

There are advantages and disadvantages to underfilled or overfilled launch

conditions, depending on the needs of the intended application. For measuring
the baseline performance of a multimode fiber, it is recommended to use a
launch condition where the beam diameter is 70-80% of the fiber core diameter.
Over short distances, an overfilled fiber has more output power; however, over
long distances (>10 - 20 m) the higher-order modes that more susceptible to
attenuation will disappear.

What is a fiber optic polarizer?

A fiber optic polarizer is a device that is used to control the polarization of light
that is transmitted through a fiber optic cable. It is used to convert unpolarized
light into polarized light or to adjust the polarization of polarized light.

How does a fiber optic polarizer work?

A fiber optic polarizer typically consists of a polarizing element that is inserted
into the fiber optic cable. This element is designed to transmit light that is
polarized in a certain direction and block light that is polarized in another
direction.
What are the benefits of using a fiber optic polarizer?
Using a fiber optic polarizer can help improve the quality of signals that are
transmitted through a fiber optic cable. It can also help reduce the amount of
noise or interference that is present in the signal.

How do I choose the right fiber optic polarizer for my application?

Choosing the right fiber optic polarizer depends on several factors, including the
wavelength of the light being transmitted, the polarization state of the input light,
and the required polarization state of the output light.

OPTICAL FIBER POLARIZER

A fiber optic polarizer is an in-line optical device specifically designed to work with
fibers. It is used to polarize or separate linearly polarized light passing through a
fiber optic line. These polarizers have several advantageous characteristics
including low insertion loss, high stability, compactness and light weight. They
usually come with one input port of single mode fiber and one output port for a
polarization maintaining fiber. Typically they also contain input and output
collimators with a plate polarizer in between. Fiber optic polarizers find
applications in fiber amplifiers, integrated optics, interferometric sensors, optical
fiber based test equipment, coherent detection systems, and more.
To understand the effect the quarter-wave plate has on the linearly polarized light
it is useful to think of the light as being divided into two components which are at
right angles (orthogonal) to each other. Towards this end, the blue and green
lines are projections of the red line onto the vertical and horizontal planes
respectively and represent how the electric field changes in the direction of those
two planes. The two components have the same amplitude and are in phase.
Because the quarter-wave plate is made of a birefringent material, when in the
wave plate, the light travels at different speeds depending on the direction of its
electric field. This means that the horizontal component which is along the slow
axis of the wave plate will travel at a slower speed than the component that is
directed along the vertical fast axis. Initially the two components are in phase, but
as the two components travel through the wave plate the horizontal component
of the light drifts farther behind that of the vertical. By adjusting the thickness of
the wave plate one can control how much the horizontal component is delayed
relative to vertical component before the light leaves the wave plate and they
begin again to travel at the same speed. When the light leaves the quarter-wave
plate the rightward horizontal component will be exactly one quarter of
a wavelength behind the vertical component making the light left-hand circularly
polarized when viewed from the receiver.

Linearly polarized light, represented using components, entering a quarter-wave

plate. The blue and green curves are projections of the red line on the vertical and horizontal planes
respectively.