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optical fiber Dictionary Terms

channel density
The number of channels per unit bandwidth handled by a single optical fiber.
sapphire optical fiber
Sapphire optical fiber is a type of optical fiber made from single-crystal sapphire, which is a form of aluminum oxide...
fiber-linked array image formatter
A wide-field multiobject spectroscopy system used in astronomy, in which a bundle of low-loss optical fibers positioned on...
transverse scattering
The method for measuring the index profile of an optical fiber or preform by illuminating it coherently and transversely to...
hydroxyl ion absorption
An optical fiber's absorption of electromagnetic waves due to hydroxyl ions remaining after contact with water.
metropolitan area network
A cable backbone used to interconnect local area networks at various sites (corporate offices and factories, for example) in...
fiber optic cable
A package for an optical fiber or fibers that may include cladding, buffering, strength members and an outer jacket.
indent
A flaw deliberately introduced into an optical fiber to prepare it for cleaving.
gradient-index profile
The term gradient-index profile refers to a specific type of refractive index distribution within an optical material. In...
monocoil sheathing
A type of tubing used to protect optical fiber cables, consisting of a wire spiral of aluminum, galvanized steel or...
delay line
A device used to delay transmission of a signal for functions such as memory loops, sequential processing or built-in...
fiber curl
A property of optical fiber that results from thermal stresses during manufacturing and is defined as the amount of...
hackle
A defect in the cleaved end face of an optical fiber, defined as multiple surface irregularities across the fiber surface. A...
microbending
In optical fiber, sharp but microscopic curvatures that create local axial displacements of a few microns and spatial...
bend radius
The radius of curvature that an optical fiber can bend without breaking.
boule
1. A group of optical fibers that are fused and then treated to produce a vacuum-tight optical fiber cone or plate. 2. An...
diffraction grating
A diffraction grating is an optical component consisting of a surface with a periodic structure of equally spaced, parallel...
bend loss
The loss of optical power in an optical fiber because radiation escapes through its bends. The radiation loss caused by...
hard-clad silica fiber
A type of optical fiber in which a silica core is surrounded by a hard polymer or similar material much stronger than the...
cladding ray
A ray that is reflected into the core of an optical fiber from the outer surface of the cladding.
mandrel
A shaft, spindle or any object generally passed through a workpiece to hold, support or shape a particular piece during its...
window
1. A piece of glass with plane parallel surfaces used to admit light into an optical system and to exclude dirt and...
fiber optic cable assembly
A fiber optic cable assembly refers to a complete unit consisting of optical fibers, connectors, protective jackets, and...
GaAlAs laser
A GaAlAs laser is a type of semiconductor laser diode that emits light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic...
signal level
Calculation of peak and average transmission power at a given point along an optical fiber or cable.
impurity level
In the context of optical materials, the term "impurity level" refers to the presence of foreign atoms or molecules within...
distal end
The end of an optical fiber farthest from the source of illumination.
photonic crystals
Photonic crystals are artificial structures or materials designed to manipulate and control the flow of light in a manner...
electro-optic modulator
An electro-optic modulator (EOM) is a device used to modulate the amplitude, phase, or polarization of light waves using an...
plasma chemical vapor deposition
The use of a plasma to induce the formation of oxides in the production of graded-index optical fibers.
buffer
1. In fiber optics, a protective material applied as an optical fiber cover that has no optical function. 2. In image...
MEMS fiber optic switch
A MEMS fiber optic switch is a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device designed to selectively route optical signals...
rare-earth doped fiber
An optical fiber in which ions of a rare-earth element, such as neodymium, erbium or holmium, have been incorporated into...
dispersion-flattened single-mode fiber
A type of glass optical fiber that provides low pulse dispersion over a broad portion of the light spectrum and as a result...
peel point
In a fiber optic guided missile, the point at which the optical fiber pays out from the bobbin on which it is wound.
zero-dispersion wavelength
In a single-mode optical fiber, the wavelength that causes material dispersion and waveguide dispersion to cancel each...
deeply depressed cladding fiber
An optical fiber, usually a single-mode fiber, that has an outer cladding with nearly the same index of refraction as the...
HE11 mode
Designation for the fundamental mode of an optical fiber.
fiber optic lightguide
A bundle of optical fibers arranged randomly for the purpose of transmitting energy, not an image.
liquid core optical fiber
Multimode straight fiber capable of transporting linearly polarized light with any incident polarization angle, and in which...
optical manufacturing tools and machinery
Optical manufacturing tools and machinery encompass a wide range of equipment, instruments, and systems used in the...
chalcogenide
Chalcogenide refers to a class of compounds containing elements from group 16 of the periodic table, which includes sulfur...
Brillouin scattering
Brillouin scattering is a phenomenon in physics where an incident electromagnetic wave (usually light) interacts with...
optical channel monitor
An optical channel monitor (OCM) is a device used in optical communication systems to monitor and analyze the performance of...
ringlight
A circular lamp or bundles of optical fibers placed around the perimeter of an objective lens to illuminate the object field...
acceptance pattern
A curve expressing an optical fiber's total transmitted power as a function of its launch angle at the input.
connector loss
Energy loss encountered at connectors in optical fiber transmission systems. The major contributors are mutual core...
noncoherent bundle
An assembly of optical fibers that will not transmit coherent images or information because the relationship of the fibers...
fiber-coupled photoconductive antenna
A fiber-coupled photoconductive antenna (FCPA) is a type of optoelectronic device that combines a photoconductive antenna...
fiber optic sensor
A fiber optic sensor is a device that uses optical fibers to detect and measure physical, chemical, biological, or...
fiber fuse
A phenomenon in which high optical power, encountering an imperfection in an optical fiber, destroys the fiber's core and...
fiber optic field flattener
A plate consisting of fused optical fibers with both surfaces ground and polished, and having the entrance surface curved to...
scattered fringe period
Measure of the interference fringe pattern produced by the forward scattering of light by an optical fiber; the fringe...
fiber optic spectrometer
A fiber optic spectrometer is a device used for measuring the spectral content of light. It utilizes optical fibers to...
liquid lightguide
An optical fiber with a hollow core filled with a liquid material that has a higher refractive index than the solid...
differential mode delay
A variation in propagation delay caused by differences in group velocity among modes of an optical fiber. Also called...
Fresnel reflection method
A method for measuring the index profile of an optical fiber by measuring the reflectance as a function of position on the...
drawing tower
A system for fabricating optical fiber, consisting of a furnace that heats the materials, a polymer coating stage, a...
fiber optic gyroscope
A fiber optic gyroscope (FOG) is a type of gyroscope that uses the interference of light waves to detect changes in...
inside vapor-phase oxidation
A method that produces low-loss optical fibers. A glass tube rotates while reactants pass through the tube and heat is...
optical continuous wave reflectometer
An instrument used to measure backscatter as well as optical return loss and reflectance within an optical fiber system by...
low-loss fiber
Optical fiber that transmits a greater percentage of input light than does high-loss step-index fiber. Low-loss fiber...
cladding
The low-refractive-index material that surrounds the core of an optical fiber to contain core light while protecting against...
embedded laser
The term "embedded laser" typically refers to a laser device that is integrated or embedded into a larger system or...
outside vapor-phase oxidation
A process for the production of optical fibers. A glass bait is rotated in a traversing flame of a reaction burner....
refracted ray method
The technique for measuring the index profile of an optical fiber by scanning the entrance face with the vertex of a high...
Kerr soliton
A Kerr soliton refers to a specific type of soliton, a self-reinforcing wave packet, that arises in nonlinear optical...
lip
A defect in the cleaved end face of an optical fiber, in the form of a sharp protrusion at the edge of the fiber.
power flow equation
Optical fiber channel characterization scheme based on three assumptions; the discrete mode spectrum can be replaced by a...
dispersion-shifted fiber
A dispersion-shifted fiber (DSF) refers to a type of optical fiber designed to minimize the effects of chromatic dispersion,...
preform
A glass structure from which an optical fiber waveguide may be drawn.
proof strength
The minimum amount of strength characteristic of an optical fiber, as determined by proof stressing; expressed in thousands...
optical repeater
In an optical fiber or waveguide communications system, an optoelectronic device or module that receives an optical signal,...
armor
A protective jacket added to an optical fiber to facilitate use in harsh environments. Armor usually consists of steel or...
rolloff
A defect in the cleaved end face of an optical fiber in which a portion of the edge has broken away; the complement of lip.
optoelectronics
Optoelectronics is a branch of electronics that focuses on the study and application of devices and systems that use light...
optical cements and adhesive
Optical cements and adhesives are specialized materials used in the assembly and bonding of optical components in optical...
light pipe
Transparent matter that usually is drawn into a cylindrical, pyramidical or conical shape through which light is channeled...
hot extrusion
A method of manufacturing polycrystalline infrared-transmitting optical fiber by heating a single halide crystal billet and...
marhic method
Nondestructive measurement of the delta and alpha of clad optical fibers that involves interferometry with the fiber...
high-loss fiber
Optical fiber in which the attenuation exceeds the normally acceptable level for long-haul or data communications use.
reference surface
The surface of an optical fiber that is used as a reference when joining optical fibers. Although the outermost cladding is...
graded index
Descriptive of an optical fiber having a core refractive index that decreases almost parabolically and radially outward...
double-window fiber
Optical fiber capable of operating at both a shorter and a longer wavelength.
fiber lapping
A method of optical fiber coupling in which the fibers are ground down to expose their cores and placed together to allow...
differential mode attenuation
The variation in attenuation among the propagating modes of an optical fiber.
transverse offset method
A technique used to measure the mode-field diameter of an optical fiber by scanning one fiber past another at a distance of...
transverse interferometry
The method used to measure the index profile of an optical fiber by placing it in an interferometer and illuminating the...
pulse spreading
Variations in a signal passing through an optical fiber caused by the effect on the pulse of the fiber's material and mode...
stress-applying part
In polarization-preserving optical fibers, the element used to induce birefringence. The SAP is highly doped to provide a...
proof stressing
A means of testing the strength of optical fibers to ensure reliability, by applying stress to the fiber so that any flaws...
germanium crystal
Germanium crystal refers to a crystalline form of the element germanium (Ge), which is a metalloid and semiconductor...
optical fiber
Optical fiber is a thin, flexible, transparent strand or filament made of glass or plastic used for transmitting light...
time-sharing laser
A laser fitted with up to eight optical fibers that transmit the energy to different workstations in turn.
step index fiber
An optical fiber in which the core is of uniform refractive index.
fiber photometry
An optical recording technique that uses light source(s), a beamsplitting cube, light detector(s) and an optical fiber...
parabolic profile
The condition in which the index of refraction in an optical fiber varies as a parabolic function of the radius.
overfill
The condition of the numerical aperture or beam diameter of the laser, LED, or other optical source being larger than the...
barrier layer
In the fabrication of an optical fiber, a layer that can be used to create a boundary against OH-ion diffusion into the core.
crush strength
The physical limit of an optical fiber or cable to withstand an applied force or weight perpendicular to the axis of the...
fusion splice
A splice accomplished by the application of localized heat sufficient to fuse or melt the ends of two lengths of optical...
splitting uniformity
When splitting the output of a single optical fiber into two or more fibers, the difference in the maximum loss between any...
double-clad fiber
Double-clad fiber (DCF) is a specialized optical fiber that features two concentric cladding layers surrounding a core. The...
fiber-lens fusing
A method of terminating optical fibers by forming a lens directly on the end of the fiber, eliminating the need for precise...
mode filter
A device used in measuring the attenuation of multimode optical fibers. A short reference length of fiber when combined with...
fiber Bragg grating
A fiber Bragg grating (FBG) is a type of optical filter that is inscribed or "written" into the core of an optical fiber. It...
erbium-doped fiber amplifier
An optical fiber that can be used to amplify an optical input. Erbium rare earth ions are added to the fiber core material...
electron-beam recording
The recording of the information contained in a modulated electron beam onto photographic or silicon resin-coated materials....
chip
1. A localized fracture at the end of a cleaved optical fiber or on a glass surface. 2. An integrated circuit.
optical testing instrument
An optical testing instrument is a device or system used to evaluate and measure the performance, quality, and...
optical microphone
Laser-powered telephone device for analog communications that employs a vibrating plastic membrane as a transmitter to...
optical strain sensors
Optical strain sensors are devices that utilize optical principles to measure the deformation or strain experienced by a...
edge-emitting LED
An edge-emitting light-emitting diode is a type of LED structure where light emission occurs primarily along the edge of the...
nonlinear optical materials
Nonlinear optical materials are substances that exhibit optical properties that are not linearly proportional to the...
large-core fiber
Optical fiber with a large core, often a step-index fiber; "large'' is at times defined as greater than 85 µm.
core-coupled lens
A semispherical or conical lens created directly on the core of an optical fiber to focus light from a laser into the fiber...
fiber optic preform
A fiber optic preform is a cylindrical glass rod or tube used as the starting material for manufacturing optical fibers. It...
fused array of fibers
Optical fibers fused together to form a solid, vacuum-tight assembly in the form of a slab or rod. Discs or rectangular...
Sagnac interferometer
A type of interferometer in which two coils of optical fiber are arranged so that light from a single source travels...
macrobending
In optical fiber, bends that are larger than microbends (see microbending), being visible. Generally they are caused by...
fiber-coupled LED
A fiber-coupled LED (light-emitting diode) refers to an LED device that is optically coupled to an optical fiber for the...
coupling efficiency
The fraction of available output from a radiant source that is coupled and transmitted by an optical fiber.
serpentine bend mode filter
A device used in measuring attenuation in optical fiber. The loss caused by the bends in a short reference length of fiber...
elasto-optic effect
A change in the refractive index of an optical fiber caused by variation in the length of the fiber core in response to...
hollow waveguide
An infrared-transmitting optical fiber with a hollow core; it can be square, round or rectangular in cross section. Capable...
modified chemical vapor deposition
Modified chemical vapor deposition (MCVD) is a technique used in the fabrication of optical fibers. It is a specialized form...
near-field scanning
A measurement technique used to determine the spatial distribution profile of an electrical or optical quantity of interest...
cladding mode stripper
A mechanism or device, especially a coating with a refractive index equal to or slightly greater than that of an optical...
galvo-directing mirrors
A system of mirrors that can be used to direct light from a single laser source into any one of a number of separate optical...
beat length
A characteristic of optical fiber used to calculate the fiber's ability to maintain polarization. The beat length describes...
modulator
A modulator is a device or component that modifies a carrier signal in order to encode information for transmission over a...
GRIN lens
A GRIN (gradient index) lens is a type of optical lens that utilizes a gradient in refractive index across its volume rather...
chirped-pulse amplification laser
A laser whose pulses are expanded, using gratings and optical fibers, before amplification and compressed to increase beam...
fiber optic imaging bundle
A fiber optic imaging bundle is a specialized optical device composed of multiple optical fibers bundled together. Each...
image transducer
Any arrangement of a bundle of optical fibers that alters the shape of the image. For example, by systematic regulation of...
lateral load test
A method of measuring microbending losses in optical fiber by sandwiching a length of fiber between two parallel plates,...
mode scrambler
A device for inducing mode coupling in an optical fiber. Also, a device composed of one or more optical fibers in which...
self-phase modulation
Self-phase modulation (SPM) is a nonlinear optical phenomenon that occurs when an intense laser beam passes through a...
static fatigue
The application of a constant stress to an optical fiber.
fiber laser
A fiber laser is a type of laser in which the active gain medium is an optical fiber doped with rare-earth ions such as...
tight buffer
Protective material surrounding the cladding of an optical fiber that allows the fiber no play within it.
optical time-domain reflectometer
An optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR) is a specialized instrument used in optical fiber communications to characterize...
stripper
A tool used to remove the outer cladding of an optical fiber without damaging the fiber core.
microbending loss
Transmission loss in optical fibers caused by packaging processes; it is considered a power-coupling effect from the guided...
transmitter
In fiber optic communications, a light source whose beam can be modulated and sent along an optical fiber, and the...
coherent fiber bundle
A coherent fiber bundle (CFB), also known as a coherent fiber optic bundle, is an assembly of multiple optical fibers...
fiber optic cleaver
A device used to prepare optical fiber end faces; a scribe line made by the cleaver's blade propagates across the fiber,...
fused silica
Glass consisting of almost pure silicon dioxide (SiO2). Also called vitreous silica. Frequently used in optical fibers and...
concatenation
The process of linking optical fiber end to end.
projecting core coupler
A device that couples a light source to an optical fiber by projecting an image of the source and the fiber core onto a...
section converter
An arrangement of optical fibers in a bundle whereby the geometric configuration of the input end differs from that of the...
core
The light-conducting portion of an optical fiber, defined by the region of high refractive index.
pyrolysis
A process that employs heat to remove polyimide plastic coatings from silica optical fibers and capillary tubing.
slab interferometry
The method for measuring the index profile of an optical fiber by preparing a thin sample that has its faces perpendicular...
vortex phase plate
A vortex phase plate is an optical device designed to impart a phase singularity, commonly referred to as a vortex or phase...
ultraviolet fiber optics
Ultraviolet (UV) fiber optics refers to optical fibers that are designed and optimized for the transmission of ultraviolet...
launch angle
The angle between the light input propagation vector and the optical axis of an optical fiber or fiber bundle.
blown fiber
A technique developed by British Telecom in which the viscous drag of air is used to install optical fibers in narrow...
optical fiber optic switches
Optical fiber optic switches are devices used in optical fiber communication systems to selectively route optical signals...
axial vapor-phase deposition
A vapor-phase oxidation process for fabricating graded-index optical fibers. It differs from outside vapor phase deposition...
energy-sharing laser
A laser that distributes its output power among two, three or four optical fibers simultaneously.
rare earth dopants
Rare earth dopants refer to elements from the lanthanide series, also known as rare earth elements, that are intentionally...
fiber optic ribbon
A coherent optical fiber bundle in which the configuration is flat rather than round, giving an output in a line.
pigtail
A short length of optical fiber permanently fixed to a component and used to couple power between it and the transmission...
fiber optic transceiver
A fiber optic transceiver, often simply referred to as an "optical transceiver," is a device used in fiber optic...
extrinsic fiber loss
A type of optical fiber loss resulting from the misalignment of fibers in a splice or connector.
dynamic fatigue
Stress applied to an optical fiber at a constant rate.
concentricity error
The distance between the center of the two concentric circles of an optical fiber that designate the diameter of the...
hybrid cable
A cable assembly containing both optical fibers and copper electrical conductors in the same jacket.
electroholography
A technology that uses electrically activated holograms stored within specially developed crystals to route information in...
zirconium fluoride
An infrared transmitting material used in the production of fluoride glasses for optical fibers.
stress corrosion
A type of fatigue found in optical fibers, caused by water or another corroding agent.
spiral
A defect in the cleaved end face of an optical fiber in which the surface changes abruptly.
optical switching
Optical switching refers to the process of controlling the routing or transmission of optical signals within a network using...
mandrel wrap test
A means of testing optical fiber for macrobending losses by wrapping the fiber once at very low tension around a mandrel,...
fiber axis
The mechanical centerline through the core of an optical fiber.
plastic optical fiber
Plastic optical fiber (POF) is a type of optical fiber made from transparent plastic, typically polymethylmethacrylate...
characteristic angle
The angle at which a given mode propagates down an optical fiber.
V-groove
A V-shaped channel pressed or etched into a substrate, in which, for example, optical fibers may be placed to create an...

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