Fiber Optics Crystalline

In an effort to innovate and improve the proven advantages of fiber optics, infrared fiber optics is born. Infrared fiber optics was first used in during the last four decades that was made out of using chalcogenide glasses like arsenic trisulfide. In 1970 the need to develop a more efficient and dependable infrared fiber optics has paved way for a reliable broadband link.

Infrared fiber optics can be classified into three categories, one of which is the crystalline; the other two are glass and hollow waveguides. Fiber optics crystalline is better choice of material than glass because it is able to transmit lightwaves in longer distances. However, fiber optics crystalline is difficult to produce. There are two types of fiber optics crystalline—single crystal and polycrystalline.

Polycrystalline optical fiber is made up of a number of halide crystals that possesses excellent infrared transmission capability, however only thallium and silver halides can be extruded into fiber optics. In this procedure of hot extrusion a prefrom made of single crystal is placed inside a hot oven and let the fiber extrude to a desired shape by the use of tungsten carbide die. Diamond carbide die is also used in the process of hot extrusion. The fiber is subjected to a temperature that reaches to almost half of the point where the substance would melt. The buffer jacket-less polycrystalline optical fibers generally measure in diameter to about 500-900 µm (microns or micrometer).

Using fiber optics crystalline made from polycrystalline material has its own drawbacks. One common disadvantage of using this fiber is its own shelf life, which also causes the decrease of efficiency in data transmission. This usually happens when deposits of crystal particles surface inside the fiber. The other known negative effect in using polycrystalline infrared optical fiber is that silver halide is susceptible to light, which could likely form into colloidal silver. In order to avoid this from happening the optical fiber must be placed in dark-colored packaging.

Single crystal optical fibers are made from the same materials used in extruding polycrystalline fibers. Single crystal fibers are usually one meter long. It is believed that polishing the optical fibers from grain particles could enhance the optical capacity of the fiber, but the thing did not materialize, so instead oxides were utilized as good materials in single crystal optical fiber production. Presently the popular material used in producing single crystal is sapphire.

Infrared fiber optics is one viable option in producing high0performance data transmitter. In today’s advancement of technology, this one can feasibly stand to the challenge.