Optical Fiber Technology

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Numerical Aperture (NA)

What is numerical aperture (NA)?

Numerical aperture is the measure of the light
gathering ability of optical fiber
The higher the NA, the larger the core of light
acceptance of the fiber and the easier it is to couple the
light signal into the fiber
At the same time, the higher the numerical aperture, the
lower the bandwidth
The two specifications must be balanced for optimum
performance

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Numerical Aperture
Specifying numerical aperture
62.5/125 –– 0.275 +- 0.015

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
 Index of Refraction
C= 3×108 meters per second, but it is reduced when it passes through
matter. The index of refraction n:

c
n=
υ
c speed of light in a vacuum, 3×108 m/s
υ speed of light in the given material
λλ 0

ν 0 λ0
υ0 = λ0 ⋅ f = c υ = λ⋅ f n= = ≥1
υ λn

λ0 wavelength of light in a vacuum

λ wavelength of light in the given material

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Index of refraction and speed of light for various materials.

Index of Refraction Speed of Light

Free space (vacuum) 1.0 3×108 m/s

Air at sea level 1.003 2.99×108 m/s
Ice 1.31 2.29×108 m/s
Water 1.33 2.26×108 m/s
Glass (minimum) 1.45 2.07×108 m/s
Glass (maximum) 1.80 1.67×108 m/s

Diamond 2.42 1.24×108 m/s

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
 Refraction with Snell's Law

n1 ⋅ sin θ1 = n2 ⋅ sin θ 2

θ1 : The incident angle (from the surface normal)

θ2 : The angle of refracted light (from the surface
normal)
n1 : index of refraction in the incident medium
n2 : index of refraction in the refracting medium
Light that is not absorbed or refracted will be
reflected. The incident ray, the reflected ray, the
refracted ray, and the normal to the surface will all
lie in the same plane.
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By Dr. M H Zaidi
 Critical Angle

We want to find the critical case of total internal reflection at the core-
cladding boundary. Using Snell’s Law with ϕ2 = 90º, we can find the
critical angle ϕCR :
n2 ⎛ n2 ⎞
sin ( ϕ CR ) = , or ϕ CR = arcsin ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟
n1 ⎝ n1 ⎠
Air n0 Unguided ray

Cladding n2 φ2́
φ2 = 90º if φ = φCR
Core n1 φ´
θŕ
φ φ

θr
θi Incident ray Reflected ray
θ´i

Cladding

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Numerical Aperture -- Mathematically
Since we can relate θr, CR to angle ϕCR by simple geometry,
and we can make the approximate n0 = 1, this equation can
be simplified:
⎛π
sin (θ i , CR ) = n1 ⋅ sinθ r , CR ⎞
= n1 ⋅ sin ⎜ − ϕ CR ⎟
⎝ 2 ⎠
The negated and shifted sine function is identical to the
cosine, and we can relate this cosine to the sine by the
trigonometric identity:
⎛π
sin (θ i , CR ) = n1 ⋅ sin ⎜ 2 − ϕ CR ⎞⎟ = n1 ⋅ cos ( ϕ CR ) = n1 ⋅ 1 − (sin ( ϕ CR ))2
⎝ ⎠
this sine is replaced in terms of n1 and n2 :
2

sin (θ i , CR ) = n1 ⋅ 1 − ⎛⎜⎜ nn2 ⎞⎟⎟ = n 21 − n 22 = NA

⎝ 1 ⎠

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
 For n1 ≈ n2 , we can simplify the numerical aperture
calculation:

sin ( θ i , CR ) = ( n1 + n2 ) ⋅ ( n1 − n2 ) ≅ 2n1 ⋅ ( n1 − n2 )
2( n1 − n2 )
= n1 ⋅ =n1 ⋅ 2Λ
n1

n1 − n2
Λ=
n1 For Δ <<1

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Acceptance Angle

θa is the maximum angle to the axis at which

light may enter the fiber in order to be
propagated, and is often referred to as the
acceptance angle for the fiber.
NA can be specified in terms of acceptance
angle as,
NA = no sin θa = (n12 – n22)1/2

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Numerical Aperture – Example 2.1
A silica optical fiber with a core diameter large enough to be
considered by ray theory analysis has acore refractive index of
1.50 and a cladding ref. index of 1.47.
Determine:
a) critical angle
b) NA
c) Acceptance angle

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Numerical Aperture – Example 2.1
Solution:
a)
θc = sin-1n2/n1 = sin-1 1.47/1.5 = 78.5o
b)
NA = (n12-n22)1/2 = (1.52 – 1.472)1/2 = 0.30
c)
θa= sin-1NA = sin-1 0.30 = 17.4o

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Numerical Aperture -- Example

For instance, if n1 = 1.5 and Λ = 0.01, then the

numerical aperture is 0.212 and the critical
angle θ cr,
is about 12.5 degrees.

See also example 2.2 and 2.3

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 Loss and Bandwidth -- Attenuation
•Attenuation ranges from 0.1 dB/km (single-mode silica fibers) to over
300 dB/km (plastic fiber)

•There are two reasons for attenuation: Scattering; Absorption

⎛ P2 ⎞
A ttenuation (dB /km ) Attenuation (dB) = 10 ⋅ log 10
⎜⎜
P1
⎟⎟
⎝ ⎠

2.5 850 nm
W indow O H A bsorption
P eak
2.0

1.5
1300 nm
W indow
1.0 1550 nm
W indow
0.5

0.0
800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700
W avelength (nm )
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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Loss and Bandwidth
Loss or attenuation is a limiting parameter in fiber optic
systems
Fiber optic transmission systems became competitive
with electrical transmission lines only when losses were
reduced to allow signal transmission over distances
greater than 10 km
Fiber attenuation can be described by the general
relation:
Pout= Pin– α L

where α is the power attenuation coefficient per unit

length

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Loss and Bandwidth

Attenuation is conveniently expressed in terms

of dB/km ⎛P ⎞ 10
α (dB km ) = − log10 ⎜⎜ out ⎟⎟
L ⎝ Pin ⎠
10 ⎛ Pin e −αL ⎞
= − log10 ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟
L P
⎝ in ⎠
10
=− (− αL ) log10 (e )
L
= 4.34α
⎛ 10 mW ⎞
P = 10 mW = 10 log10 ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ = 10 dBm
⎝ 1 mW ⎠
⎛ 10 27
⎞
P = 27 dBm = 1 mW ⎜⎜ 10 ⎟ = 501 mW
⎟
⎝ ⎠
Power is often expressed in dBm (dBm is dB from 1mW)

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Loss and Bandwidth

Example: 10mW of power is launched into an

optical fiber that has an attenuation of α=0.6
dB/km. What is the received power after
traveling a distance of 100 km?
P = (10
out )1 mW = 10 nW
−50 10

Initial power is: Pin = 10 dBm

Received power is: Pout= Pin– α L =10 dBm – (0.6)(100)
= -50 dBm

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Loss and Bandwidth

Example: 8mW of power is launched into an

optical fiber that has an attenuation of α=0.6
dB/km. The received power needs to be -
22dBm. What is the maximum transmission
distance?
Initial power is: Pin = 10log10(8) = 9 dBm
Received power is: Pout = 1mW 10-2.2 = 6.3 μW
Pout - Pin = 9dBm - (-22dBm) = 31dB = 0.6 L
L=51.7 km

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Causes of Attenuation
Attenuation, or losses, in a fiber link come from
a variety of sources
Bending losses
Absorption
Atomic Absorption
Scattering
Rayleigh Scattering
Mie-Scattering
Brillouin Scattering

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Absorption

The portion of attenuation resulting from the

conversion of optical power into another energy
form, such as heat.
Every material absorbs some light energy
The amount of absorption can vary greatly with
wavelength
It depends very strongly on the composition of
a substance

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Absorption is uniform

The same amount of the same material

always absorbs the same fraction of light at
the same wavelength.
Absorption is cumulative
The total amount of material the light passes
through
Material absorbs the same fraction of the light
for each unit length

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Atomic Absorption
The atoms of any material are capable of
absorbing specific wavelengths of light.
because of their electron orbital
structure.
As light passes along an optical fibre.
more and more light is absorbed by the
atoms as it continues on its path

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Intrinsic Absorption
is caused by basic fiber-material
properties.
Intrinsic absorption sets the minimal
level of absorption.

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Extrinsic Absorption.
is caused by impurities introduced into the
fiber material.
Extrinsic absorption also occurs when
hydroxyl ions (OH-) are introduced into
the fiber.
Water in silica glass forms (Si-OH) bond

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Material Absorption
Material absorption
Intrinsic: caused by atomic resonance of the fiber
material
Ultra-violet
Infra-red: primary intrinsic absorption for optical communications
Extrinsic: caused by atomic absorptions of external
particles in the fiber
Primarily caused by the O-H bond in water that has absorption peaks
at λ=2.8, 1.4, 0.93, 0.7 μm
Interaction between O-H bond and SiO2 glass at λ=1.24 μm
The most important absorption peaks are at λ=1.4 μm and 1.24 μm

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
 Scattering

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Scattering
The interaction of light with density
fluctuations within a fiber

The inhomogeneities of the

refractive index of the media
are responsible for this
phenomena.
Light traveling through the
fiber interacts with the
density areas.
Light is then partially
scattered in all directions.

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Types of Scattering
Rayleigh Scattering
Mie-Scattering
Brillouin Scattering
Raman Scattering

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Rayleigh Scattering
Is the scattering of light by particles smaller than the
wavelength of the light

Occurs when the size of the density fluctuation (fiber defect) is

less than one-tenth of the operating wavelength of light. is
more effective at short wavelengths

Therefore the light scattered down to the earth at a large angle

with respect to the direction of the sun's light is predominantly
in the blue end of the spectrum.

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
 intensity of the scattered light is
inversely proportional to the fourth power of the wavelength

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Mie Scattering
If the size of the defect is greater than one-tenth
of the wavelength of light, the scattering
mechanism is called Mie scattering.
Mie scattering, caused by these large defects in
the fiber core.
scatters light out of the fiber core. However, in
commercial fibers, the effects of Mie scattering
are insignificant

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Rayleigh and Mie Scattering

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Brillouin scattering

spontaneous Brillouin scattering

simulated Brillouin scattering

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Spontaneous Brillouin scattering

Scattering of light through

Index variations induced by
the pressure differences of an
acoustic wave traveling
through a transparent
material.

spontaneous Brillouin
scattering, can also be
described using the quantum
physics: a photon from a
pump lightwave is
transformed in a new Stokes
photon of lower frequency
and a new phonon adding to
the acoustic wave.
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Absorption and Scattering Loss

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External Losses
Bending loss
Radiation loss at bends in the optical fiber
Insignificant unless R<1mm
Larger radius of curvature becomes more significant if there
are accumulated bending losses over a long distance
Coupling and splicing loss
Misalignment of core centers
Tilt
Air gaps
End face reflections
Mode mismatches

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
 BENDING LOSSES

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BENDING RADIUS
ÂThe bend radius that causes loss due to light
leaking from the core. When you exceed the
minimum bend radius, your signal strength will
drop.

ÂTypical radius is three to five inches.

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Microbends

Small microscopic bends

Microbend loss increases attenuation because low-order modes

become coupled with high-order modes that are naturally lossy

Loss caused by microbending can still occur even if the fiber is

cabled correctly

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Macrobend losses

Radius of curvature is large

compared to the fiber
diameter.
During installation, if fibers
are bent too sharply,
macrobend losses will
occur

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Loss on Standard Optical Fiber

Wavelength SMF28 62.5/125

850 nm 1.8 dB/km 2.72 dB/km

1300 nm 0.35 dB/km 0.52 dB/km
1380 nm 0.50 dB/km 0.92 dB/km
1550 nm 0.19 dB/km 0.29 dB/km

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Indoor/Outdoor cables

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Dispersion

Dispersive medium: velocity of propagation depends on

frequency
Dispersion causes temporal pulse spreading
Pulse overlap results in indistinguishable data
Inter symbol interference (ISI)
Dispersion is related to the velocity of the pulse

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Material Dispersion

Since optical sources do not emit just a single frequency but a

band of frequencies, then there may be propagation delay
differences between the different spectral components of the
transmitted signal. The delay differences may be caused by
material dispersion and waveguide dispersion.
For a source with rms spectral width σλ and mean wavelength
λ, the rms pulse broadening due to material dispersion σm is
given by

σλL
d n1 2
σm |λ |
c dλ 2

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Material Dispersion

The Material Dispersion for optical fibers is sometimes

quoted as a value for
2
d n1 2
d n1
|λ ( 2 )|
2
| 2|
dλ dλ
or simply
It may be given in terms of a material dispersion parameter M
defined as:
1 dτ m λ d 2 n1
M= = | 2|
L dλ c dλ
expressed in units of ps nm -1 km -1
Where τ m is the pulse delay due to material dispersion
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 Example

2
d n
A glass fiber exhibits material dispersion given by | λ 2 ( 21 ) |
dλ
of 0.025. Determine the material dispersion parameter at a
wavelength of 0.85 μm, and estimate the rms pulse broadening
per kilometer for a good LED source with an rms spectral width
of 20nm at this wavelength.

Photonic Network
By Dr. M H Zaidi
Solution
The material dispersion parameter may be obtained
λ dn1 1 2 dn1
0.025
M= | |= | λ | = snm−1
km−1
= 98.1psnm−1km−1
c d λ 2 cλ dλ2 2.998x105 x850

σλ L
d 2 n1
The rms pulse broadening is given as σm |λ 2 |
c dλ

Therefore in terms of material dispersion parameter M

σ m σ λ LM
Hence, the rms pulse broadning per kilometer due to material
dispersion
σ m (1km) = 20 x1x98.1x10−12 = 1.96nskm −1
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Example 2

Estimate the rms pulse broadening per kilometer

for the fiber in the above example when the
optical source used is an injection laser with a
relative spectral width σλ/λ of 0.0012 at a
wavelength of 0.85 μm

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By Dr. M H Zaidi
Solution

The rms spectral width may be obtained from the relative

spectral width by
σλ= 0.0012 λ = 0.0012 x 0.85 x 10-6
= 1.02nm
The rms pulse broadening in terms of material dispersion
parameter is given by
σ m σ λ LM
σm = 1.02 x 1x 98.1 x 10-12 = 0.10 ns km-1
Hence the rms pulse broadening is reduced by a factor of 20
compared with the LED source in the previous example

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Polarization mode Dispersion (PMD)

Polarization mode dispersion (PMD) is another

complex optical effect that can occur in single-
mode optical fibers.

Single-mode fibers support two perpendicular

polarizations of the original transmitted signal.

If a were perfectly round and free from all

stresses, both polarization modes would
propagate at exactly the same speed, resulting in
zero PMD.
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Polarization mode dispersion (PMD)

However, practical fibers are not perfect, thus,

the two perpendicular polarizations may travel at
different speeds and, consequently, arrive at the
end of the fiber at different times.

The fiber is said to have a fast axis, and a slow

axis. The difference in arrival times, normalized
with length, is known as PMD (ps/km0.5).

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Polarization Mode Dispersion (PMD)
Polarization mode dispersion is an inherent
property of all optical media. It is caused by the
difference in the propagation velocities of light
in the orthogonal principal polarization states of
the transmission medium.
The net effect is that if an optical pulse contains
both polarization components, then the different
polarization components will travel at different
speeds and arrive at different times, smearing the
received optical signal.

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Low power saves provider and money.

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Assignment
The material dispersion parameter for a glass fiber is 20 ps nm-1
km-1 at a wavelength of 1.5 μm. Estimate the pulse broadening
due to material dispersion within the fiber when a light is
launched from an injection laser source with a peak wavelength
of 1.5 μm and an rms spectral width of 2nm into a 30 km length
of fiber.
The material distribution in an optical fiber defined |d2n1/dλ2| is
4.0 x 10-2 μm-2. Estimate the pulse broadening per kilometer due
to material dispersion within the fiber when it is illuminated with
an LED source with a peak wavelength of 0.9 μm and an rms
spectral width of 45 nm.
Questions 2.2, 2.4, 2.5
Ramaswami

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