Introduction to Fibre Optics

The field of fibre optics communications has exploded over the past two decades.
Fibre is an integral part of modern day communication infrastucture and can be
found along roads, in buildings, hospitals and machinary.
The fibre itself is a strand of silica based glass, it's dimensions similar to those of
a human hair, surrounded by a transparent cladding. Light can be transmitted
along the fibre over great distances at very high data rates providing an ideal
medium for the transport of information. This section will provide explainations
for some of the terms associated with the field of fibre optic engineering for
telecommunications.
This list is not exhaustive nor are the subjects treated in depth, have a look at our
recommended text section to learn more...

• Fibre Basics,
o Structure
o Light in a fibre

• Transmission Characteristics of Fibre

o Attenuation
o Dispersion

• Jargon Buster
o EDFA
o TDM
o DWDM

Fibre Basics
 Fibre Structure
The diagram shows the typical
structure of a fibre used for
communication links. It has an inner
glass core with an outer cladding.
This is covered with a protective
buffer and outer jacket. This design
of fibre is light and has a very low
loss , making it ideal for the
transmission of information over long distances.
Light in a fibre
The light propagates along the fibre by the process of total internal reflection. The
light is contained within the glass core and cladding by careful design of their
refractive indices. The loss along the fibre is low and the signal is not subject to
electromagnetic interference which plagues other methods of signal
transmission, such as radio or copper wire links.
The signal is, however, degraded by other means particular to the fibre such as
dispersion (described below) and non linear effects (caused by a high power
density in the fibre core)

Transmission Characteristics of Fibre

Image courtesy of Corning Optical

Fiber
Attenuation
The loss, or attenuation in fibre depends
on the wavelength of the light propagating
within it. The image shows the attenuation spectrum of a typical single mode
fibre used within the telecommunications industry. There are three main
bandwidth 'windows' of interest in the attenuation spectrum of fibre. The 1st
window is at 800-900nm, here there is a good source of cheap silicon based
sources & detectors. The 2nd window is at 1260-1360nm, here there is low fibre
attenuation coupled with zero material dispersion (see dispersion ) . The 3rd
window of interest is at 1430-1580nm where fibre has it's attenuation minimum.
Typically the telecommunications industry use wavelengths in the 3rd window
which coincides with the gain bandwidth of Fibre Amplifiers (see EDFAs ) In the
future the search for greater bandwidth is likely to open up other windows for
fibre transmission.

Dispersion
Light from a typical optical source will contain a finite spectrum. The different
wavelength components in this spectrum will propagate at different speeds along
the fibre eventually causing the pulse to spread. When the pulses spread to the
degree where they 'collide' it causes detection problems at the receiver resulting
in errors in transmission. This is called Intersymbol Interference (ISI).
Dispersion (sometimes called chromatic dispersion) is a limiting factor in fibre
bandwidth, since the shorter the pulses the more susceptible they are to ISI.

Jargon Buster

EDFA - Erbium Doped Fibre Amplifier

Otherwise known as a fibre or optical amplifier, the EDFA is an important
component in long distance fibre links. Fibre and component attenuation in
modern telecommunications links degrade the transmitted signal. When the
signal power becomes too low errors will occur at the optical receiver as it
struggles to recognise the transmitted signal from received noise.
Before the introduction of EFDAs, in order to transmit signals over long distances
the signal would be detected and re-transmitted at regular intervals, this process
was called regeneration. EDFAs provide the telecommunications engineer with
the means to optically amplify the signal en-route without converting the signal
from the optical back to the electrical domain. The component works by the
principle of stimulated emission. A piece of fibre doped with Erbium irons is
pumped by a laser at high powers. The excited erbium irons release their energy
when the data signal is passed through the fibre. The process is such, that the
energy they release matches the signal exactly, thus amplifying the signal.

TDM - Time Division Multiplexing

The diagram below illustrates that is a method of incorporating many signals into
one. Many slower speed signals are sampled onto one high speed signal.
 DWDM - Dense Wavelength Division Multiplex
Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing is a method of
expanding the bandwidth of fibre. Many high speed signals are
multiplexed together using different wavelength (or colours) for
transmission over one fibre. The diagram below illustrates the
concept.

Web page written by: Roshene McCool rmccool@jb.man.ac.uk

INTRODUCTION TO FIBRE OPTICS

Optical fibres are fibres of glass, about a few tenths of a millimetre in diameter, which are
used to carry signals in the form of pulses of light, over distances up to 50 km. These
signals may be coded voice communications or computer data.

The glass fibre is surrounded by plastic cladding, which has a lower index of refraction
than the glass. Any light rays sent down the inner glass fibre will either reflect off the
outer surface of the glass, or refract back into the glass when they try to escape into the
cladding
(since n2 < n1)
This total internal reflection keeps almost all the light inside the glass fibre. The glass
'pipe' can be bent, twisted around corners, and buried in cables, and any light signal
sent in one end will emerge out the other ... at the speed of light in glass!

Sending light signals this way has many uses. Wherever electrical signals are used in
copper wire, fibre optics can be used instead. Many more signals can be sent at the
same time this way, and there is less loss of energy. Light moving through glass fibres
is also less subject to distortion from outside sources (like vehicle ignitions) than
electrons moving through copper wire.

Optical fibre cables are much lighter and thinner than copper cables. This means that
much less space is required in underground cabling ducts. They are also easier to handle.
Optical fibres are much more difficult to tap information from undetected ... a great
advantage for banks and security installations. They can be used safely in explosive or
flammable atmospheres.
 Optical fibres are more expensive per metre than copper wire. However, one fibre
can carry many more signals than a single copper cable, and the large transmission
distances mean that fewer expensive power boosters are required. Optical fibres
cannot be joined (spliced) together as a easily as copper cable, so people who work
with them require special training and expensive precision splicing equipment.

Optical fibres are commonly used in surgery to relay images from tiny cameras inserted
in patients' bodies. They are used in communication cables for telephone and high-speed
Internet connections, and for cable TV.