Optical fiber is a long thin, cylindrical fiber made of glass or plasticthat is smaller than one tenth of the human hair. The standard optical fiber in telecom is made up of three cylindrical layers, counted inside out the fiber core (diameter 8x10um) as well as the cladding (diameter of 125um) and buffer coating (diameter 9000um).
Fiber core and cladding are made from glass or silica. The fiber core and the layers of cladding are used to keep the light within the core and prevent it from leakage. The fiber buffer coating is constructed out of plastic or acrylic, and gives handling flexibility and physical protection to the fiber.
Optical fibers utilize an optical phenomenon known as total internal reflection. When light is introduced into the fiber from its end face, it is confined inside the core without spilling out and losing its energy.
Then, light is digitally modified to represent 1 and 0 just like a computer, and information can be transferred from one site to another site which may be from San Francisco all the way to New York.
What are fiber optic connectors and how do they function?
Now you understand how optical fibers operate. What is the fiber optic connector? And what’s its function in the fiber optic network of telecommunications?
In simple terms A fiber optic connector’s job is just like an electric power source, it relies on light to transmit from one part that is optical to another segment that is optical.
Since optical fibers are so tiny they require fiber optic connectors to be constructed with high precision, with a size of 0.1um that is just one centimeter of the human hair.
Fiber optic connectors align two fibers from end to end so precisely that light can be transferred from one fiber to another without bounce off the connector and losing its signal.
Besides fiber optic connectors, they provide cross connect flexibility to the telecommunications network. Thus, a complex computer network could be made modular and manageable.
Like other connectors that are used in electronic industry, the electric industry, or computer industry, many different types connected to fiber optic cables were invented in the course of development of the fiber optic communication industry. Certain of them were very popular in the industry and رقم الالياف البصرية stc now have served their purpose and are fading away.
The most widely used fiber optic connectors used nowadays include SC, ST, LC, FC, MTRJ, SMA and a few of others that are less well-known. You will surely see new connectors being developed as a result of the advancement of technology.