CH4

1. Describe in general terms liquid-phase techniques for the preparation of

multi component glasses for optical fibers. Discuss with the aid of a suitable
diagram one melting method for the preparation of multi component glass.
a. Preparation of ultrapure material powders which are usually oxides or
carbonates.
b. Melt these powdered to form a homogeneous, bubble-free multi
component glass.

2. Indicate the major advantages of vapor-phase deposition in the preparation

of glasses for optical fibers. Briefly describe the various vapor-phase
techniques currently in use.
a. Used to produce silica-rich glasses of the highest transparency and
with the optimal optical properties.
i. Vapor axial deposition (VAD).
ii. Outside Vapor-phase Oxidation process (OVPO).
iii. Modified chemical Vapor deposition (MCVD).
iv. Plasma-activated chemical Vapor deposition (PCVD).

3.
a. Compare and contrast, using suitable diagrams, the outside vapor-
phase oxidation (OVPO) process and the modified chemical vapor
deposition (MCVD) technique for the preparation of low-loss optical
fibers.
b. Briefly describe the salient features of vapor axial deposition (VAD)
and the plasma-activated chemical vapor deposition (PCVD) when
applied to the preparation of optical fibers.
VAD OVPO MCVD PCVD
4. Discuss the drawing of optical fibers from prepared glasses with regard to:
a. Multi component glass fibers;
b. Silica-rich fibers

There is two-stage process in which initially the pure glass is produced

and converted into a form (rod or preform) suitable for making the
fiber. A drawing or pulling technique is then employed to acquire the
end product. The methods of preparing the extremely pure optical
glasses generally fall into two major categories which are:
a. Conventional glass refining techniques in which the glass is
processed in the molten state (melting methods) producing a
multi component glass structure.
b. Vapor -phase deposition methods producing silica-rich glasses
which have melting temperatures that are too high to allow
the conventional melt process.

5. List the various silica-based optical fiber types currently on the market
indicating their important features. Hence, briefly describe the general
areas of application for each type.

6. Outline the developments that have taken place in relation to plastic

optical fibers since 1996, with particular reference to contrasting the
performance attributes of PF-POF with PMMA POF.
Reduction of transmission loss for POF was achieved, however, in
1996 by employing amorphous perfluorinated polymer for the core
material. Hence a graded index POF using poly perfluoro-butenylvinyl
ether or PFBVE provided for both lower attenuation and potentially
high capacity. This new type of POF, which has been named
perfluorinated (PF) plastic optical fiber (PF-POF) produced by Asahi
Glass Co. (the perfluorinated material is also called CYTOP), has been
commercially available since June 2000.

7. Briefly describe the major reasons for the cabling of optical fibers which are
to be placed in a field environment. Thus state the functions of the optical
fiber cable.
a. Fiber protection: To protect against fiber damage and breakage both
during installation and throughout the life of the fiber.
b. Stability of the fibre transmission characteristics: To have good
stable transmission and minimized optical attenuation.
 c. Cable strength: To improved by incorporating a suitable strength
member and by giving the cable a properly designed thick outer
sheath.
d. Identification and jointing of the fibers within the cable: To use
multiple jointing techniques rather than jointing each fiber
individually.

8. Explain how the Griffith theory is developed in order to predict the fracture
stress of an optical fiber with an elliptical crack.
a. This theory assumes that the surface flaws are narrow cracks with
small radii of curvature at their tips, It indicates that deeper cracks
have higher stress at their tips.

b. Silica has a Youngs modulus of 910^10 Nm2 and a surface energy

of 2.29 J. Estimate the fracture stress in psi for a silica optical fiber
with a dominant elliptical crack of depth 0.5m. Also, determine the
strain at the break for the fiber (1 psi 6894.76 N m2).
33-35

9. Another length of the optical fiber described in Problem 4.8 is found to

break at 1% strain. The failure is due to a single dominant elliptical crack.
Estimate the depth of this crack ( E =stress/strain)

10. Describe the effects of stress corrosion on optical fiber strength and
durability.
a. There is another effect which reduces the fiber fracture stress below
that predicted by the Griffith equation. It is due to the slow growth of
flaws under the action of stress and water and is known as stress
corrosion. Stress corrosion occurs because the molecular bonds at the
tip of the crack are attacked by water when they are under stress.
This causes the flaw to grow until breakage eventually occurs.

b. It is found that a 20 m length of fused silica optical fiber may be

extended to24 m at liquid nitrogen temperatures (i.e. little stress
corrosion) before failure occurs. Estimate the fracture stress in psi
for the fiber under these conditions. Youngs modulus for silica is
910^10Nm2 and 1 psi 6894.76 N m.
Strain = L/L Sf=Strain*E Sf psi

11. Outline the phenomena that can affect the stability of the transmission
characteristics in optical fiber cables and describe any techniques by which
these problems may be avoided
a. The phenomenon known as microbending, results from small lateral
forces exerted on the fiber during the cabling process and it causes
losses due to radiation in both multimode and single-mode fibers
 b. It has become accepted when:
i. A fiber is excited by a diffuse Lambertian source, launching all
possible modes, and is referred to as a uniform or fully filled
mode distribution.
ii. Due to a significant amount of mode coupling and mode
attenuation, the distribution of optical power becomes
essentially invariant with the distance of propagation along
the fiber. This second distribution is generally referred to as a
steadystate or equilibrium mode distribution, which typically
occurs after transmission over approximately 1 km of fiber.

12. Discuss optical fiber cable design with regard to:

a. Fiber buffering;

b. Cable strength and structural members;

c. Layered cable construction;

d. Cable sheath and water barrier.

Further, compare and contrast possible cable designs for multifiber cables,
making particular reference to unit cables.
St : is the theoretical cohesive strength,
p: is the surface energy of the material,
E : is Youngs modulus for the material (stress/strain), and
la : is the atomic spacing or bond distance.

where m : is the Weibull distribution parameter,

S0 : is a scale parameter,
L : is the fiber length and
L0 : is a constant with dimensions of length.
 CH5

1. State the two major categories of fiberfiber joint, indicating the

differences between them.
Demountable fiber connectors
Fiber splices
(simple connectors)
- Semi permanent or permanent - Removable joints which allow easy,
joints. fast, manual coupling and uncoupling
- Analogous to electrical soldered of fibers.
joints. - Analogous to electrical plugs and
sockets

a. Briefly discuss the problem of Fresnel reflection at all types of

optical fiber, and indicate how it may be avoided.
i. (Definition): Fresnel reflection happen when a small
proportion of the light may be reflected back into the
transmitting fiber causing attenuation at the joint. It
associated with the step changes in refractive index at the
jointed interface (i.e. glass-air-glass).
ii. (Effect): Fresnel reflection may give a significant loss at a fiber
joint even when all other aspects of the connection are ideal.
iii. (Solve): Fresnel reflection at a fiber connection can be reduced
to a very low level through the use of an index-matching fluid
in the gap between the jointed fibers. When the index-
matching fluid has the same refractive index as the fiber core,
losses due to Fresnel reflection are in theory eradicated.
b. A silica multimode step index fiber has a core refractive index of
1.46, determine the optical loss in decibels due to Fresnel reflection
at a fiber joint with:
i. Small air gap; (N1=1.46 , N=1) *R *L
ii. An index-matching epoxy which has a refractive index of
1.40. (N1=1.46 , N=1.40) *R *L
It may be assumed that the fiber axes and end faces are perfectly
aligned at the joint.

2. The Fresnel reflection at a butt joint with an air gap in a multimode step
index fiberis 0.46 dB. Determine the refractive index of the fiber core.
(L=0.46 *R , R=__, N=1 *N1)
3.
a. Describe the three types of fiber misalignment which may
contribute to insertion loss at an optical fiber joint.
i. Longitudinal misalignment;
 ii. Lateral misalignment; reduces the overlap region between the
two fiber cores
iii. Angular misalignment;
b. A step index fiber with a 200m core diameter is butt jointed. The
joint which is index matched has a lateral offset of 10m but no
longitudinal or angular misalignment. Using two methods, estimate
the insertion loss at the joint assuming the uniform illumination of
all guided modes. (N1=N, Y=10 m, A=200m )

Multimode fiber joints

1. Longitudinal misalignment
step index graded index

Multimode fiber joints

2. Lateral misalignment
step index graded index

n1: core refractive index,

n: medium refractive index,
y: lateral offset of the fiber core axes,
a: fiber core radius

: parabolic refractive index profile where = : parabolic refractive index profile where =2
uniform distribution of all guided modes only uniform distribution of all guided modes only Lt=
Lt= 0.64 Y/A 0.85 Y/A
uniform distribution of both guided plus leaky modes uniform distribution of all guided and leaky modes
Lt= 0.5 Y/A 0.75 Y/A
 Multimode fiber joints
3. Angular misalignment
step index graded index

: angular displacement in radians,

: relative refractive index difference for
the fiber.
NA= n1(2)^1/2

Core diameters mismatch

numerical apertures mismatch

refractive index profiles mismatched

Combined

4. A graded index fiber has a characteristic refractive index profile () of 1.85

and a core diameter of 60m. Estimate the insertion loss due to a 5m
lateral offset at an index-matched fiber joint assuming the uniform
illumination of all guided modes. (A=30m, =1.85, Y=5m L)

5. A graded index fiber with a parabolic refractive index profile (=2) has a
core diameter of 40m. Determine the difference in the estimated insertion
losses at an index-matched fiber joint with a lateral offset of 1m (no
longitudinal or angular misalignment). When performing the calculation
assume (A=20m, Y=1m, )
a. The uniform illumination of only the guided modes. (Lt= 0.85 Y/A)
b. The uniform of both guided and leaky modes. (Lt= 0.75 Y/A)

6. A graded index fiber with a 50m core diameter has a characteristic

refractive index profile () of 2.25. The fiber is jointed with index matching
and the connection exhibits an optical loss of 0.62 dB. This is found to be
solely due to a lateral offset of the fiber ends. Estimate the magnitude of
the lateral offset assuming the uniform illumination of all guided modes in
the fiber core. (A=25m, = 2.25, Loss=0.62dB,