Fiber Optic Blog

FIBER OPTIC CONNECTORS: THEN VS. NOW

Finding the right fiber optic connector for an application used to be a straightforward choice based on what was available, but now the number of fiber connectors on the market can be paralyzing. Design and performance improvements have resulted in a proliferation of styles and types of fiber optic connectors. Many fiber connectors currently on the market provide a wide range of terminal-to-terminal solutions, many of which can be terminated in the field.

EARLY FIBER OPTIC CONNECTORS

Old style fiber optic connectors like the Biconic are now obsolete, but they were cutting edge technology. AT&T derived the name Biconic from a conic-shaped ferrule centered around the fibers. Metal SMA connectors were the only choice for connecting multimode fibers until Japanese engineers developed ceramic ferrules.

Soon D4 and FC connectors used built-in keys as optical coupling repeaters with FC/PC and FC/UPC receptors. The ST bayonet-style connector followed quickly. SMA fiber connectors are declining in popularity, but ST fiber connectors are still industry standards. The Fiber Optic Association has a detailed history of connectors if you want a trip down memory lane.

CURRENT FIBER OPTIC CONNECTORS

Most optical fiber connectors on the market today have LC duplex ports or MPO multi-fiber ports. The twin advantages of small size and high-density patching make them indispensable in most data centers using 40 GBPS or 100 GBPS broadband. Now you can choose between MXCs and PRIZMs with laser lenses instead of physical connectors.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT FIBER CONNECTOR

STEP ONE: NARROW YOUR CHOICE BASED ON THE APPLICATION

One way of finding the right fiber connector is to eliminate the ones you that won’t work, giving you a smaller set of choices to compare.

What type of hardware are you connecting?

Do you need connections at each end?

What about data transmission speeds, distance, and total connections?

Your insertion loss (IL), return loss (RL), and standards requirements will guide your decision about both the equipment and fiber connectors needed for your application. Next, decide whether or not to use pre-terminated cables based on your optical transceiver modules and bulkhead receptacles.

STEP TWO: NARROW YOUR CHOICE BASED ON THE OPERATING ENVIRONMENT

Your application’s operating environment is an essential factor in choosing a fiber optic connector. The environmental conditions, type of fiber, cable construction will limit the choices available. For example, field terminations are more demanding in extreme environments so a pre-polished connector is a better choice. The cable diameter will limit your options of jackets. Mechanical connectors are far more convenient that polishing in the field, but they have a limited range of operating temperatures. Adhesive fiber connectors need to be polished in the field for optimal performance, so they are a good choice if you are operating in a data center or any other reasonably accessible environment. Or you can challenge your skills with a Fusion Splice Connector for precision fitting.

STEP THREE: FINALIZE YOUR LIST BASED ON LIFE EXPECTANCY

You probably considered the life expectancy of your application when you set up your fiber network. A system built to last 30 years will be very different from the one you only need for a few months. Most cable systems fail at the connections, not the fiber itself. Fiber connectors show a decrease in performance after cleaning, repetitive mating and demating, and scratching. Polished fiber connectors often have a lifetime warranty, so check manufacturer’s websites. Pre-polished connectors have a shorter lifespan. Whichever type you choose, training your technicians to clean fiber connectors properly, unplug using the pulling grip instead of the connector, and dusting during mating extend the life.

CONCLUSION

There are many choices for fiber connectors on the market, but you can find the best match for your application by methodically narrowing down the options based on your application needs and operating environment. This will result in a limited list that you can reasonable research on manufacturer and review websites.

5 FACTS ABOUT YOUR FIBER OPTIC CABLE CONNECTION CLEANLINESS

by http://www.fiber-mart.com

Maintaining clean fiber optic cable connections is a vital part of any network installation, but proper cleaning is often overlooked. Check out the 5 facts below, and then make sure you think twice before making a connection without ensuring that your connector’s end faces are clean:

#1 – IMPROPER CLEANING OF FIBER OPTIC CABLE CONNECTIONS

Improper cleaning of fiber optic cable connections is the number one cause for network failures and contractor call-backs. USCONEC, a leader in providing passive components for high density optical interconnects, indicates that 80% of network owners and 98% of fiber optic cable installers cite contamination as the root cause of network failures. The use of dry cleaning tapes is recommended for single and multi-fiber ferrule connectors. Dry cleaning tape sticks and swabs, used with non volatile optical cleaning fluids, are acceptable for cleaning optical ports. Note that this recommendation does not include expanded beam lens (EBL) connectors or other connectors that may have anti-reflection coatings that require other special cleaning techniques.

#2 – YOU CAN’T JUDGE FIBER OPTIC CLEANLINESS WITH THE NAKED EYE

Your fiber optics cable isn’t clean, even if it appears to be with a naked eye. A dust particle, as small as one micrometer, can block up to one percent of the transmitted light through the fiber optics cable connector. A speck of dust as small as nine micrometers is still too small to see without a microscope, but it can completely block the fiber optic cable’s core. Use a fiber optic microscope with a good connector optical stage capable of 200X magnification for multi-mode connectors and 400X for single mode connectors. Digitally record your photos for future reference.

#3 – FIBER OPTIC CONTAMINATION WILL (PROBABLY) OCCUR

It’s nearly impossible to prevent contamination of fiber optic cable connections, even with the dust caps that come installed on your fiber optic cords and connectors. Common sources of fiber optic contamination include oils and dust, packaging material, and other work site debris. Wet reagent-grade isopropyl alcohol can be used for more stubborn contaminates on the ferrule surfaces if necessary (see the table below). With Legrand’s strict manufacturing processes, fiber optic cable assemblies may be clean right out of the bag, but we still recommend that you always clean and inspect the ferrules before plugging in.

#4 – PROPER PHYSICAL CONTACT OF FIBER OPTIC COMPONENTS IS CRITICAL

Fiber optic contamination prevents proper physical contact which can cause scratches and pitting defects that lead to permanent damage of your fiber optic cable. Physical Contact(PC), Ultra Physical Contact (UPC) and Angled Physical Contact (APC) connectors rely on proper physical contact to achieve a low loss, low reflection optical connection. If there is a film or debris that causes an air gap on the ferrule surface, the insertion loss of the connector increases, and so do the reflections.

#5 – DUST ATTRACTS DUST

Charged dust particles attract more particles. Because glass fibers are insulators, contaminated connector end faces will also continue to attract and accumulate more and more dust and debris. A clean fiber optic connector will appear pristine under the microscope and there will be no contaminants on the fiber’s surface, or damage to the core.

How to Place EDFA for DWDM Distance Extension?

No matter where the EDFA optical amplifier is deployed in the DWDM link, the signal power can be always enhanced for making a longer DWDM system.Undoubtedly, the EDFA amplifier is an ideal choice for long-haul DWDM system. But how does it work for extending DWDM system?

Optic Amplifier Basics

The basic form of EDFA consists of a length of EDFA, a pump laser, and a WDM system for combining the signal and pump wavelength so that they can propagate simultaneously through the EDF.

When transmitting over long distance, the optical signal has to be amplified many times in between owing to the signal loss from fiber attenuation, connectivity losses, fiber splicing losses, etc. Before optical amplifier is invented, the optical signal has to be first converted into electrical signal, amplified, and then converted back to optical signal again. The process is very complicated and expensive. Optical amplifier has since been invented that can amplify signals directly, this process is significantly cheaper and started a fiber optic revolution. There are three fiber optic amplifier types: EDFA, Raman amplifier and semiconductor optical amplifier(SOA).

EDFA (Erbium Doped Fiber Amplifier) principle

EDFAs use a pump laser (980 nm or 1480 nm) to bring up electrons to a higher energy level. If signal amplification is achieved by emitted photons of the same signal wavelength with the help of stimulated emission.

An erbium-doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) is a device that amplifies an optical fiber signal. It is used in the telecommunications field and in various types of research fields. An EDFA is “doped” with a material called erbium. The term “doping” refers to the process of using chemical elements to facilitate results through the manipulation of electrons.The EDFA was the first successful optical amplifier and a significant factor in the rapid deployment of fiber optic networks during the 1990s.

The EDFA rate, or amplification window, is based on the optical wavelength range of amplification and is determined by the dopant ions’ spectroscopic properties, the optical fiber glass structure and the pump laser wavelength and power. As ions are sent into the optical fiber glass, energy levels broaden, which results in amplification window broadening and a light spectrum with a broad gain bandwidth of fiber optic amplifiers used for wavelength division multiplex communications. This single amplifier may be used with all optic fiber channel signals when signal wavelengths are in the amplification window. Optical isolator devices are placed on either side of the EDFA and serve as diodes, which prevent signals from traveling in more than one direction.

How Does EDFA Amplifier Work?

Placed at the Transmitting Side : A booster optical amplifier operates at the transmission side of the link, working to amplify aggregated optical input power for reach extension. Booster EDFA is designed to enhance the transmitted power level or to compensate for the losses of optical elements between the laser and optical fibers. It is usually adopted in a DWDM network where the multiplexer attenuates the signal channels. Booster optical amplifier features high input power, high output power, and medium optical gain.

Placed at the Intermediate Points: as shown in the figure below, the EDFA in-line amplifier can be put at any intermediate point along the long transmission link. This kind of EDFA optical amplifier is designed with low input power, high output power, high optical gain and low noise figure, which are normally deployed every 80-100 km to amplify signals between any two link nodes on the main optical link, with the aim of compensating the loss caused by fiber transmission and other factors. Thereby, the optical signal level can stay above the noise floor.

Placed at the Receiving Side: A pre-amplifier operates at the receiving end of a DWDM link. Pre-amplifiers are used for optical amplification to compensate for losses in a demultiplexer located near the optical receiver. Placed before the receiver end of the DWDM link, pre-amplifier works to enhance the signal level before the photo detection takes place in an ultra-long haul system, hence improving the receive sensitivity. It features medium to low input power, medium output power, and medium gain.

Conclusion

The EDFA optical amplifier can be deployed as booster optical amplifier , in-line amplifier and pre-amplifier contributes to optimize network performance for extending the reach. It can also work as in-line amplifier at the intermediate point along the link for compensating the fiber loss in the transmission link.Which also increases data capacity required for current and future optical communication system. Optical Amplifiers provided by Fiber-Mart are designed for all network segments (access, metro, regional and long haul) and applications (telecom, cable and enterprise). any question pls not hesitate to contact us www.fiber-mart.com or E-mail: service@fiber-mart.com

Introduction of Armored fiber cable

by http://www.fiber-mart.com

Armored Fiber Cable Structure

As shown in the below picture, the optical fibers of the armored fiber cable are in the center of the cable covered by metal armor. The metal armor is covered by Kevlar firstly, then by the outer jacket. This is usually the most basic structure of armored fiber cables. For different applications, the structure will change accordingly. Kindly visit “Armored Fiber Cable Structures” for more details about different structure of the armored fiber cable.

Types of Armored Fiber Cable

Armored fiber optic cable can be divided into two types according to the metal tube: interlock armored fiber cable and corrugated armored cable. Interlocking armor is an aluminum armor that is helically wrapped around the cable and found in indoor and indoor/outdoor cables. It offers ruggedness and superior crush resistance. Corrugated armor is a coated steel tape folded around the cable longitudinally. It is found in outdoor cables and offers extra mechanical and rodent protection. Both types of these armored fiber cables enable installation in the most hazardous areas, including environments with excessive dust, oil, gas, moisture, or even damage-causing rodents.

Armored Fiber Cable for Indoor and Outdoor Use

Armored fiber cable can be used for indoor, indoor/outdoor and outside plant (OSP) applications. According to different installation environments, tight-buffered armored cable and loose-buffered armored cable are generally adopted: loose-buffer armored fiber cables are usually applied in outdoor applications, while both loose-buffered and tight-buffered armored fiber cable can fit indoor and indoor/outdoor applications.

Indoor Armored Fiber Cable

Armored cable used for indoor applications often consists of tight-buffered or loose-buffered optical fibers, strengths members and an inner jacket. The inner jacket is commonly surrounded by a spirally wrapped interlocking metal tap armor. As the fiber optic communication technology develops rapidly with FTTX, there is a fast growing demand for installing indoor fiber optic cables between and inside buildings. Indoor armored fiber cable experiences less temperature and mechanical stress and it can retard fire effectively.

Indoor/Outdoor Armored Fiber Cable

This armored fiber optic cable shares much popularity in today’s telecommunication network, which allows links from building to building eliminating the transition from indoor cable to outside plant cable. The following picture shows the structure of commonly used multi-fiber I/O armored fiber cable.

Outdoor Armored Fiber Cable

Armored cable for outdoor is made to ensure operation safety in complicated outdoor environment, and most of them are loose buffer design: with the strengthen member in the middle of the whole cable, loose tubes surround the central strength member. Inside the loose tube there is waterproof gel filled to make the cable water resistance. The combination of the outer jacket and the armor protects the fibers from gnawing animals and damages that occur during direct burial installations.

How to Select Armored Fiber Cable?

The selecting of armored fiber cable is like the selection of standard fiber cables. Fiber type (OS2, OM1, OM2, OM3, or OM4), fiber count and cable riser should all be considered. However, there is many special properties of armored fiber cable, the armored fiber cable selection should also consider many other factors.

Armor Type of Armored Fiber Cables

The market can provide armored fiber cables with different types of armor tubes which are with different structures and materials. The most commonly used armor tubes are with interlock design and corrugated design as shown in the above picture. For now, the interlock armored fiber cable is very popular and being used in a lot of indoor and indoor/outdoor applications. Corrugated armored fiber cable is often used in outdoor applications. As for the materiel for armor tube, steel and aluminum are the most commonly used. Now light steel armored fiber cables are being widely used in a lot of indoor applications, because of its lower weight and flexible properties.

Pre-Terminated or Field-Terminated Armored Fiber Cables

As there is a strong metal armored tube inside the armored fiber cable, the termination of armored fiber cable is difficult than that of standard fiber optic cables. In some applications, field-terminated armored fiber cable is better in outdoor applications. While, to save time and ensure transmission quality, many installers will choose pre-terminated armored fiber cables for indoor applications. The pre-terminated armored fiber cables provided by the market are mainly armored fiber patch cable and armored fiber trunk cable. The former looks like the standard fiber patch cable, but it is stronger than the traditional fiber patch cable and is more flexible during cable for it can provide larger bend radius. Pre-terminated armored fiber trunk cable is a length of armored fiber cable with several legs on each ends terminated with fiber optic connectors. Kindly visit “Armored Fiber Cable” page for more specific details about pre-terminated armored fiber cables.

Conclusion

Armored fiber cable presents a premium solution to secure your network by protecting fiber links, which is specified as the primary backbone due to its distinct advantages for space efficiency, lower cost of materials and installation, as well as less risk of downtime and damage.Fiber-Mart offers a great variety of armored cable. and tested rigorously to ensure product reliability and durability, and all the fiber cables are ready in stock for delivery in volume.welcome to contact with us: product@fiber-mart.com.

Introduction to Passive Optical Network (PON)

by http://www.fiber-mart.com

Seen from the entire network structures，the Passive Optical Network (PON) market is in a high-growth period due to the ongoing deployments of Fiber to the Home (FTTH) networks.today, we mainly Introduce Passive Optical Network (PON).

What does Passive Optical Network (PON)mean?

A passive optical network (PON) is a cabling system that uses optical fibers and optical splitters to deliver services to multiple access points. A PON system can be fiber-to-the-curb (FTTC), fiber-to-the-building (FTTB) or fiber-to-the-home (FTTH). A PON system consists of optical line termination (OLT) at the communication provider’s end and a number of optical network units (ONUs) at the user’s end. The term “passive” simply means that there are no power requirements while the network is up and running.

A PON consists of an optical line terminal (OLT) at the service provider’s central office (hub) and a number of optical network units (ONUs) or optical network terminals (ONTs), near end users. A PON reduces the amount of fiber and central office equipment required compared with point-to-point architectures. A passive optical network is a form of fiber-optic access network.In most cases, downstream signals are broadcast to all premises sharing multiple fibers. Encryption can prevent eavesdropping.upstream signals are combined using a multiple access protocol, usually time division multiple access (TDMA).

Feature

A PON takes advantage of wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), using one wavelength for downstream traffic and another for upstream traffic on a single mode fiber (ITU-T G.652). BPON, EPON, GEPON, and GPON have the same basic wavelength plan and use the 1490 nanometer (nm) wavelength for downstream traffic and 1310 nm wavelength for upstream traffic. most common is 28 dB of loss budget for both BPON and GPON, but products have been announced using less expensive optics as well. 28 dB corresponds to about 20 km with a 32-way split. Forward error correction (FEC) may provide for another 2–3 dB of loss budget on GPON systems. As optics improve, the 28 dB budget will likely increase. Although both the GPON and EPON protocols permit large split ratios (up to 128 subscribers for GPON, up to 32,768 for EPON), in practice most PONs are deployed with a split ratio of 1:32 or smaller.

A PON consists of a central office node, called an optical line terminal (OLT), one or more user nodes, called optical network units (ONUs) or optical network terminals (ONTs), and the fibers and splitters between them, called the optical distribution network (ODN). “ONT” is an ITU-T term to describe a single-tenant ONU. In multiple-tenant units, the ONU may be bridged to a customer premises device within the individual dwelling unit using technologies such as Ethernet over twisted pair, G.hn (a high-speed ITU-T standard that can operate over any existing home wiring – power lines, phone lines and coaxial cables) or DSL. An ONU is a device that terminates the PON and presents customer service interfaces to the user. Some ONUs implement a separate subscriber unit to provide services such as telephony, Ethernet data, or video.

An OLT provides the interface between a PON and a service provider′s core network. These typically include:

IP traffic over Fast Ethernet, gigabit Ethernet, or 10 Gigabit Ethernet;
Standard TDM interfaces such as SDH/SONET;
ATM UNI at 155–622 Mbit/s.

functions are separated into two parts:

The ONU, which terminates the PON and presents a converged interface—such as DSL, coaxial cable, or multiservice Ethernet—toward the user;
Network termination equipment (NTE), which inputs the converged interface and outputs native service interfaces to the user, such as Ethernet and POTS.

The Benefits of PON

As early as before, PONs began appearing in corporate networks. Users were adopting these networks because they were cheaper, faster, lower in power consumption, easier to provision for voice, data and video, and easier to manage, since they were originally designed to connect millions of homes for telephone, Internet and TV services.Passive Optical Networks (PON) provide high-speed, high-bandwidth and secure voice, video and data service delivery over a combined fiber network.

The main benefits of PON as below:

Lower network operational costs
Elimination of Ethernet switches in the network
Elimination of recurring costs associated with a fabric of Ethernet switches in the network
Lower installation (CapEx) costs for a new or upgraded network (min 200 users)
Lower network energy (OpEx) costs
Less network infrastructure
You can reclaim wiring closet (IDF) real estate
Large bundles of copper cable are replaced with small single mode optical fiber cable
PON provides increased distance between data center and desktop (>20 kilometers)
Network maintenance is easier and less expensive

Conclusion

According to the above article, you may have a understanding of the passive optical network.A PON network eliminates the need for switches and a wiring closet, which means fewer points of failure. Fiber-Mart manufactures and offers customized services. any question pls welcome to visit http://www.fiber-mart.com or contact us.E-mail: service@fiber-mart.com

Introduction of Armored fiber cable

Armored fiber cable with build-in metal armor can provide stronger protection of the optical fibers than standards fiber optic cables. It can protect the optical fibers from rodent, oil, impact, etc. What’s more, some armored fiber can provide maximum bend radius. However, various types of armored fiber cables usually make customers confused. There are too many specific details to consider during selection, like fiber counts, jacket type, structure of the armored fiber cable, etc. The superior features make armored fiber cable a perfect fit for campus & building backbones, data centers and industrial applications.This post is something about Armored Fiber Cable you must be know.

Armored Fiber Cable Structure
As shown in the below picture, the optical fibers of the armored fiber cable are in the center of the cable covered by metal armor. The metal armor is covered by Kevlar firstly, then by the outer jacket. This is usually the most basic structure of armored fiber cables. For different applications, the structure will change accordingly. Kindly visit “Armored Fiber Cable Structures” for more details about different structure of the armored fiber cable.

Types of Armored Fiber Cable
Armored fiber optic cable can be divided into two types according to the metal tube: interlock armored fiber cable and corrugated armored cable. Interlocking armor is an aluminum armor that is helically wrapped around the cable and found in indoor and indoor/outdoor cables. It offers ruggedness and superior crush resistance. Corrugated armor is a coated steel tape folded around the cable longitudinally. It is found in outdoor cables and offers extra mechanical and rodent protection. Both types of these armored fiber cables enable installation in the most hazardous areas, including environments with excessive dust, oil, gas, moisture, or even damage-causing rodents.

Armored Fiber Cable for Indoor and Outdoor Use
Armored fiber cable can be used for indoor, indoor/outdoor and outside plant (OSP) applications. According to different installation environments, tight-buffered armored cable and loose-buffered armored cable are generally adopted: loose-buffer armored fiber cables are usually applied in outdoor applications, while both loose-buffered and tight-buffered armored fiber cable can fit indoor and indoor/outdoor applications.

Indoor Armored Fiber Cable
Armored cable used for indoor applications often consists of tight-buffered or loose-buffered optical fibers, strengths members and an inner jacket. The inner jacket is commonly surrounded by a spirally wrapped interlocking metal tap armor. As the fiber optic communication technology develops rapidly with FTTX, there is a fast growing demand for installing indoor fiber optic cables between and inside buildings. Indoor armored fiber cable experiences less temperature and mechanical stress and it can retard fire effectively.

Indoor/Outdoor Armored Fiber Cable
This armored fiber optic cable shares much popularity in today’s telecommunication network, which allows links from building to building eliminating the transition from indoor cable to outside plant cable. The following picture shows the structure of commonly used multi-fiber I/O armored fiber cable.

Outdoor Armored Fiber Cable
Armored cable for outdoor is made to ensure operation safety in complicated outdoor environment, and most of them are loose buffer design: with the strengthen member in the middle of the whole cable, loose tubes surround the central strength member. Inside the loose tube there is waterproof gel filled to make the cable water resistance. The combination of the outer jacket and the armor protects the fibers from gnawing animals and damages that occur during direct burial installations.

How to Select Armored Fiber Cable?

Armor Type of Armored Fiber Cables
The market can provide armored fiber cables with different types of armor tubes which are with different structures and materials. The most commonly used armor tubes are with interlock design and corrugated design as shown in the above picture. For now, the interlock armored fiber cable is very popular and being used in a lot of indoor and indoor/outdoor applications. Corrugated armored fiber cable is often used in outdoor applications. As for the materiel for armor tube, steel and aluminum are the most commonly used. Now light steel armored fiber cables are being widely used in a lot of indoor applications, because of its lower weight and flexible properties.

Pre-Terminated or Field-Terminated Armored Fiber Cables
As there is a strong metal armored tube inside the armored fiber cable, the termination of armored fiber cable is difficult than that of standard fiber optic cables. In some applications, field-terminated armored fiber cable is better in outdoor applications. While, to save time and ensure transmission quality, many installers will choose pre-terminated armored fiber cables for indoor applications. The pre-terminated armored fiber cables provided by the market are mainly armored fiber patch cable and armored fiber trunk cable. The former looks like the standard fiber patch cable, but it is stronger than the traditional fiber patch cable and is more flexible during cable for it can provide larger bend radius. Pre-terminated armored fiber trunk cable is a length of armored fiber cable with several legs on each ends terminated with fiber optic connectors. Kindly visit “Armored Fiber Cable” page for more specific details about pre-terminated armored fiber cables.

Conclusion
Armored fiber cable presents a premium solution to secure your network by protecting fiber links, which is specified as the primary backbone due to its distinct advantages for space efficiency, lower cost of materials and installation, as well as less risk of downtime and damage.Fiber-Mart offers a great variety of armored cable. and tested rigorously to ensure product reliability and durability, and all the fiber cables are ready in stock for delivery in volume.welcome to contact with us: product@fiber-mart.com.

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Optic Amplifier Basics

EDFA (Erbium Doped Fiber Amplifier) principle

How Does EDFA Amplifier Work?

Conclusion

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What does Passive Optical Network (PON)mean?

Feature

The Benefits of PON

Conclusion

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