Basics of OFC and O & M

Basics of OFC

Created by Reviewed by Approved by Approval date Code Version

Satish D Chavan Saurabh.Sr.Srivastava Saurabh.Sr.Srivastava 04-Jan-19 V1.1

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Content flow:

 Optical Communication
 Advantages of Optical Fibre Cable
 Snell’s Law
 Attenuation and sources of attenuation
 Characteristics of fibre
 Classification of fibre
 Insertion Loss
 Return Loss
 Cleaning of optical connectors.

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Intercity Digital Transmission System:

• Digital Transmission System:

Digital uW Radio

Terminal Terminal

Higher Higher
order order
multiplexer multiplexer
Satellite

Satellite dish Satellite dish

Optical fiber cable

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Optical Communication:

 Transmission of Signal through an Optical Fiber to a distant Receiver

 At Transmitter- Electrical Signal is converted to Optical Signal
 At Receiver – Optical Signal is converted back to Electrical Signal
 Medium Used – Optical Fiber Cable

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Journey through Optical Tunnel:

If we get a optical tunnel where once a light pulse enters at one end can only come out at
the other end, would serve our purpose..
Transmission through an OFC is like light ball traveling down a tunnel. It reflects
several time on the “wall” before reaching the end of the tunnel.

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Optical Spectrum:

Visible
UV IR
l

850 nm
 Communication bands 980 nm
– 850, 1310, 1550 nm 1310 nm
Light 1480 nm
– Ultraviolet (UV) 1550 nm
– Visible 1625 nm
– Infrared (IR)
Velocity = c =¦ x l
1 Nano meter = 10 -9 meter
1 Pico meter = 10 -12 Wavelength: l (nanometers)
meter Frequency: ¦ (tera hertz)

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Advantages of Optical Fibre Cable:

 Very large information carrying capacity (band width) of the order Terabytes

 Low loss # Information can be sent over a large distance, without the need of
regeneration

 Fibers are immune to Electro Magnetic Interference (EMI).

 Small size and light weight.

 Greater safety – Fiber is made of dielectric (glass) material which do not conduct
electricity .It cannot cause fire or explosions. It is not prone to lightning.

 Higher security ,no tapping possible.

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Application of Optical Fibre:
 Telecommunication Trunk Network

 Subscriber Access Loop

 CATV

 Local Area Network

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Snell’s Law:

As A1 increases A2 also increases.

At particular value A,
1 A2 becomes 900 .
A1
n1 > n2 A is called critical angle
n1 A
i.e. No light enters material 2

A2
n2
At any angle of incidence greater than ‘A’ all
light will be reflected back to material 1.

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Propagation of Light in Fibre:

When a ray of light is incident at an angle greater than the critical angle, it gets
completely reflected back to the same material.

This is called TOTAL INTERNAL REFLECTION

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Fibre Geometry:

An optical fiber is made of three sections: Cladding

Core (125 µm)
• The core carries the light signals (7 – 62.5 µm)

i.e. Optic Pulse travels in core only

• The cladding keeps the light in the core

• The coating protects the glass

 Fiber dimensions are measured in µm
-6
• 1 µm = 0.000001 meters (10 )
• 1 human hair ~ 50 µm
Coating
 Refractive Index (n)
(245 – 250 µm)
• n=c/v
• n ~ 1.4682
• n (core) > n (cladding)
• c = 3 x 10 8 Meter / second
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Optical Fibre Specifications:

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Light Refraction & Refractive Index:

 Light travels with different velocities in different media.

 The speed of light changes when it travels from one material to another.

 Direction of propagation also changes causing refraction

 Index of refraction (refractive index) of a material denoted by ’n’ is the ratio of the
velocity of light ‘c’ in free space to the velocity of light in that material ‘v’.i.e. n
=c/v

(e.g.- Refractive Index Of Glass ~ 1.5 )

 A small portion of light always reflect back when it passes from one material to
another.
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Attenuation (Losses):

Attenuation is the measure of the reduction in signal magnitude, or loss, along a length of
fiber.

Attenuation in fiber optic cabling is usually expressed in decibels per unit length of cable
(i.e. dB/km) at a specified wavelength.

It is a major factor considered in the designing of any transmission system. In fiber
optics, attenuation is one factor which determines the power loss.

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Sources of Attenuation in Fibre:

 Absorption

Scattering

Geometric Effects

 Bending Effects

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Attenuation due to Absorption:

Intrinsic Absorption:

 It is a natural property of glass - even purest glass absorbs energy in selected wavelength regions near
Ultra Violet region.
 Caused by the intrinsic properties of the material itself, the impurities in the glass, and any atomic defects
in the glass.
 These impurities absorb the optical energy, causing the light to become dimmer. e.g. non visibility of car
head light in case of heavy fog in winter.
 Intrinsic absorption is an issue at longer wavelengths and increases dramatically above 1700 nm.
 Due to the presence of impurities like metal ions and hydroxyl (OH) ions- light energy is absorbed. The
peak of OH_ ion absorption occurs at approx.1400nm wave length range
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Attenuation due to Scattering:

 Scattering is caused by small variations in the density of glass as it cools. Loss of optical energy due to
imperfections / inhomogeneity in the fiber (localized density variations). And therefore act as scattering
objects
 At imperfections of glass material i.e. impurities - light scatters in different directions - and thus energy is
lost. This is known as Rayleigh Scattering.
 Scattering affects short wavelengths more than long wavelengths and limits the use of wavelengths
below 800 nm.
 It is inversely proportional to the fourth power of wave length.

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Attenuation due to Bending:

Micro bending Macro bending

Loss due to excessive bending.

Deformation of fiber axis (axial distortion) during
cabling causes light to couple out of the fiber. Fiber Bending radius < 3 mm

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Graph of Loss Vs Wavelength:

Attenuation varies with the wave length of light.

The fiber exhibits minimum attenuation at wavelength slots 1310nm, and
1550nm .
These are called second window and third window.
First window 850 nm was used earlier days when
laser diodes were available only at that wavelength
Loss in db/km

0 800 850 Wave1000

length 1310 1550 1600

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Characteristics of Optical Fibre:

 Numerical Aperture

 Dispersion

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Numerical Aperature:
It is the light gathering ability of a fiber. A fiber with large NA accepts and
propagates light well. A fiber with low NA requires highly directional light beam.

Mathematically Numerical Aperture NA = n22 - n12

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Numerical Aperture-CONE:

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What is Dispersion?

 Dispersion is the spreading or broadening (distortion)of light pulses as they propagate through the fiber.
 Dispersion is the change in shape of a propagating wavelength causing distortion

• Too much dispersion gives rise to bit-errors at the receiver (i.e., the inability to distinguish a 0 from a 1)

1 0 1 1 ? 1

Not recognizable

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Modal Dispersion:

A. Modal Dispersion

Dispersion caused due to different paths the light rays take to travel from one end to the other. This is
prominent in Multi Mode Fibers.

MMF (Step Index)

Optical Paths
Modal Difference
Difference
in
inarrival
arrival
times
times

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Chromatic Dispersion:

B. Chromatic Dispersion
Dispersion caused due to the variation in velocities of different
wavelength w.r.t the refractive index of the material. This is prominent in
Single Mode Fibers.
The difference in arrival times of the different components, would cause the broadening of the signal at the
receiving end, the result being dispersion.

SMF Difference
Wavelengths  Difference
2
Chromatic 1
in
inarrival
arrival
times
times

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Classification of Fibres:

Material Classification

Mode Classification

Refractive Index Classification

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Material Classification:

Glass Core And Glass Cladding (Most Widely Used)

Glass Core And Plastic Cladding

Plastic Core And Plastic Cladding- (Inexpensive , But Support Very Low Band
Widths)

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Mode Classification:

Multimode fibre (MM)

Light travels in diff. Path
Core diameter varies - 50 to 62.5 micro-meter
Mode Depends on - Wave length - Core dia. - Refractive Index n1 & n2.
Modes do not depend on Length of Fiber.
n2 Cladding
Primarily used for intra-office applications.
less expensive than single mode.
n1 Core
Single mode fibre (SM)
Only one mode (ray) propagates
Light travels in Only one Path / mode. n2 Cladding
Core diameter is about 7-9 micro-Meter.
Primarily used for long dist. applications.
n1 Core

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Refractive Index Classification:

Step Index fibre (SI Fibre)

Graded Index fibre (GRIN Fibre)

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Step Index Fibre:

 Core Has Uniform Refractive Index.

 A Sharp Step In Core And Cladding Junction.(n1 to n2)
 Chromatic Dispersion

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Graded Index Fibre:
Ref. Index Of Core Is Not Uniform rather Gradually Decreases Radially Outwards .Modal Dispersion

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Dispersion- eats BW:

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Types of Single Mode Fibre:

SMF : G.652 (standard, 1310 nm optimized, unshifted)

SMF : G.652D (1310 nm -1550nm optimized)
SMF DS (dispersion shifted) : G.653
For single channel operation at 1550 nm
SMF : G.654
For WDM operation in the 1550 nm region

LEAF and True Wave (Non-Zero Dispersion Shifted) : G.655

Latest generation fiber developed in mid 90s
For better performance with high-capacity DWDM Systems

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Fibre Colour Coding:
Colour – coding / Sequencing is important .
 In a bunch of 12 fibers Colour sequence is maintained as given below as per ITU (International
Telecommunication Union ) - code

BLUE GREY YELLOW

ORANGE WHITE VIOLET
GREEN RED ROSE/PINK
BROWN BLACK AQUA/NATURAL

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Cable Construction:
Central strengthening member Loose tubes
(Fiber-Reinforced-Plastic)
Dummy tube

Kevlar yarn

Filler - Jelley

Fibers

Polyethylene sheath

Polyethylene jacket

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 Ribbon Multi-tube Single Jacket Steel Tape Armored:
• Typical Construction of Cable:
1. Central Strength Member

2. Loose Tube with Ribbons and

GEL

3. WS Yarns

4. Corrugated Steel Tape

5. Ripcord(S)

6. Outer sheath
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Ribbon or Loose Fibre Standard Colour Code:

Physical Characteristics:
Fibre Count 96F 288F
No. of Tubes/Cable 4 6
No. of Fibres/Ribbon 8 8
No. of Ribbon/Tube 3 6
Fibres/Tube 24 48

NLD Intercity 48F 6 LT, 8F/LT.

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Route- Cable Types:

 Intercity Routes : G.652D 48 F / 24 F (Loose Tube)

 Intracity Routes : G 652D 288F/ 96 F (Ribbon)

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Intracity Network-Construction Type Classification:

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Intracity Network-Construction Type Classification cont’d:

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Intracity Network-Construction Type Classification cont’d:

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Reason for Joints:

Fibers / Cables are not endless.

At both Transmitter and Receiver points, fiber must be joined to that equipment –
by Connectors.

Whenever Cable cuts - For their subsequent restoration.

For laying cable more than 4 km long – by Splicing.

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Optical Fibre Splicing:

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Components of Fibre Optic Connector:

Connector Body

Dust Cap Crimp Sleeve

Strain Relief Boot

Ceramic Ferrule

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Types of Connectors:

From 70+ designs only few dominate real-world applications

FC Connector
Used widely for Telecom and datacom.

SC Connector
Used mainly for Datacom and CATV.

ST Connector
Limited data use. Control and Opto
electronics

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LC Connector:

 LC connector – simplex and duplex – push and latch – 1.25mm ferrule. Available in
single mode and multimode.
 Externally LC connectors resemble a standard RJ45 telephone jack. Internally they
resemble a miniature version of the SC connector.
 LC connectors use a 1.25mm ceramic (zirconia) ferrule instead of the 2.5mm ferrule.
 LC connectors are licensed by Lucent and incorporate a push-and-latch design
providing pull-proof stability in system rack mounts. Highly favored for single mode
applications.

LC- LC-APC
LC
PC

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The Connector Ferrule End Face:

Glass Core
Ferrule Materials:
Glass Cladding Ceramic
(125 micron) Polymer / Plastic
Stainless Steel

Ferrule
(2.5mm)

(Not to scale)

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Physical Contact- PC:
PC Connector ferrule are formed with a convex end face of 15mm  5mm radius of
curvature to ensure the fiber cores are in positive contact with each other.

The ferrules are pressed securely together by a spring in each connector to maintain this
contact.

PC connectors had typical losses of 0.3 dB and a return loss of 30 to 40 dB.

Ferrule

Fiber

End face

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Connector End Face-Radius of Curvature:

Connectors have convex ferrule end face. Proper physical contact requires convex mating ferrule end
faces.
A convex end face insures accurate contact between fiber ends and eliminates a glass-to-air gap between
mating fibers. As the radius of curvature is made smaller, the losses are reduced.

Physical Contact
Super Physical Contact
Ultra Physical Contact
 Angled PC finish is tilted at 8 degrees to avoid reflectance (difficult to field-terminate)
Radius Reduces

PC SPC UPC

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APC Connector:

• Angled Polished Connectors:

Reduces reflectance
Cannot be mated with the other polish types.

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Insertion Loss:
 Determined by measuring how much transmitted light is lost as it passes through the connector junction.

Expressed in dB.

Note : dB = 10log10 (Pout / Pin)

(example: 3 dB loss is 50 % loss of signal, because 10log10 (0.5) ~ 3)

Typical Insertion loss is 0.2 dB (This represents 5% of signal loss)

Better the Polishing, better is the Insertion loss.

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Loss Factors:

End Gap

Finish and Dirt

Co-axiality

End Angle

Axial Run-Out

Core Mismatch

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Magnified Connector End Face:

Excellent Condition Scratched Core

Chipped Connector Cleaning Residue

Unclean, Lint or Dirt Scratched Face

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Protrusion and Undercut:

 These are the defects in the ferrule polishing process.

 Either are caused by failing to match the spherical surfaces

of the ferrule and fiber.

Protrusion: Undercut:
Result of insufficient polishing Result of excess polishing.

Fiber

Ferrule

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Return Loss- Back Reflection, Back Scattering:
Measurement of the amount of light reflected back by a change in refractive index at the connector
interface.
It will cause serious data speed limitations and reduced transmission efficiency.

reflected

incident incident
reflected

PC APC

The purpose of the APC angled surface is to reflect this stray light away from the signal source so that it
does not interfere.

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Return Loss-Back Reflection:
Return Loss / Back Reflection is expressed in dB (Decibels)

The typical return losses for various ferrule end face types:

PC Connector - 40 dB 1/10,000 reflected back

SPC Connector - 50 dB 1/100,000 reflected back

UPC Connector - 60 dB 1/1,000,000 reflected back

APC Connector - 70 dB 1/10,000,000 reflected back

We see that APC is the best since the loss is minimum.

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Cleaning of Connectors:

With Fiber Optics, tolerance to dirt is near Zero.

Dust particles may scratch the ferrule/fiber end face if not cleaned properly, and remedy will be changing
the connector!

Use lint-free pads and Iso-propyl Alcohol for cleaning connectors. This is effective and inexpensive.

“Always keep dust caps on connectors, bulkhead splices, patch panels etc.”

“A system is only as good as its weakest link. Do not allow the connector to become the point of failure
because of poor attention. Choose the best connector possible, frequently measure the losses of the
connectors to check the degradation, and clean every connector, every time.”

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Thank You

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