Photonics Dictionary

In fiber optics, the use of a detector to study the range of refractive indices achieved at various wavelengths. This information is calculated electronically to establish the divergence between...

The low-refractive-index material that surrounds the core of an optical fiber to contain core light while protecting against surface contaminant scattering. In all-glass fibers, the cladding is...

In fiber optics, the glass that is found around the glass core of the fiber, and that has a lower refractive index than the fiber.

A mechanism or device, especially a coating with a refractive index equal to or slightly greater than that of an optical fiber's cladding, that removes modes propagating through the cladding by...

A ray that is reflected into the core of an optical fiber from the outer surface of the cladding.

The distance between the center of the two concentric circles of an optical fiber that designate the diameter of the cladding and the center of the two concentric circles that designate the diameter...

An optical fiber, usually a single-mode fiber, that has an outer cladding with nearly the same index of refraction as the core and an inner cladding with a very low index of refraction.

Double-clad fiber (DCF) is a specialized optical fiber that features two concentric cladding layers surrounding a core. The design of double-clad fibers allows them to be used in various...

A package for an optical fiber or fibers that may include cladding, buffering, strength members and an outer jacket.

A fiber optic preform is a cylindrical glass rod or tube used as the starting material for manufacturing optical fibers. It serves as the precursor from which optical fibers are drawn. The process of...

Descriptive of an optical fiber having a core refractive index that decreases almost parabolically and radially outward toward the cladding. This type of fiber combines high bandwidth with moderately...

A type of optical fiber in which a silica core is surrounded by a hard polymer or similar material much stronger than the customary cladding material.

A device used to evaluate the quality of fiber optic splices made in the field by injecting light into the cladding of the fiber and measuring the output at the other end of the splice.

A type of fiber optic sensor that detects changes in pressure, vibration, sound level or acceleration by monitoring the ejection of light from the fiber core to the cladding caused by microbending...

Also referred to as the V number in fiber optics; the normalized frequency is a dimensionless quantity, denoted by the symbol V, given by: where a is waveguide core radius, l is wavelength in vacuum,...

Optical fiber is a thin, flexible, transparent strand or filament made of glass or plastic used for transmitting light signals over long distances with minimal loss of signal quality. It serves as a...

Plastic optical fiber (POF) is a type of optical fiber made from transparent plastic, typically polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) or polycarbonate. Unlike traditional glass optical fibers, which are made...

An optical waveguide having a silica core and a plastic cladding.

The surface of an optical fiber that is used as a reference when joining optical fibers. Although the outermost cladding is usually used, the core cladding surface is also a common reference point.

A measure of the relative difference in refractive index between two optical materials. Most commonly used in fiber optics where the refractive index contrast, D, is given as follows: where n1 equals...

A profile of an optical component, usually a fiber, in which the core is of uniform refractive index and the cladding or surrounding optical surface of a different, usually lower, index.

In polarization-preserving optical fibers, the element used to induce birefringence. The SAP is highly doped to provide a different coefficient of expansion from the rest of the fiber material; when...

A tool used to remove the outer cladding of an optical fiber without damaging the fiber core.

Protective material surrounding the cladding of an optical fiber that allows the fiber no play within it.

In fiber optics, the annular region between two concentric circles; used to specify fiber cladding and core sizes.

Ultraviolet (UV) fiber optics refers to optical fibers that are designed and optimized for the transmission of ultraviolet light, which is electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths shorter than...