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represents the phase relationship between the incoming signal phase φS and the local oscillator signal
phase φL defined at some arbitrary point in time. Hence, the two fields may be written as:
eS = ES Cos (St + ) and eL = EL Cos (Lt)
where ES is the peak incoming signal field and ωS is its angular frequency, and EL is the peak local
oscillator field and ωL is its angular frequency.
The two wavefronts from the incoming signal and the local oscillator laser must be perfectly matched
at the surface of the photodetector for ideal coherent detection.
When the local oscillator signal is much larger than the optical signal, then
IS = e / hf [2PSPL cos (St Lt + ) ]
where η is the quantum efficiency of the photodetector, e is the charge on an electron, h is Planck’s
constant and f is optical frequency, PS and PL are the optical powers in the incoming signal and local
oscillator signal.

Noise in detection process:

Noise is a term generally used to refer to any undesired disturbances that mask the received signal in
a communication system. In optical fiber communication systems we are generally concerned with
noise due to spontaneous fluctuations.
There are three main types of noise due to spontaneous fluctuations in optical fiber communication
systems: thermal noise, dark current noise and quantum noise.
1) Thermal Noise: This is the spontaneous fluctuation due to thermal interaction between, say, the
free electrons and the vibrating ions in a conducting medium, and it is especially common in resistors
at room temperature. The thermal noise current it in a resistor R may be expressed by its mean square
value and is given by: it2 = 4KTB / R
Where, K is Boltzmann’s constant, T is the absolute temperature and B is the post-detection
(electrical) bandwidth of the system (assuming the resistor is in the optical receiver).

2) Dark Current Noise: When there is no optical power incident on the photodetector a small
reverse leakage current still flows from the device terminals. This dark current contributes to the total
system noise and gives random fluctuations flow of the photocurrent. Thus the dark current noise is
given by: id2 = 2eBId. where, e is the charge on an electron and Id is the dark current. It may be
reduced by careful design and fabrication of the detector.

3) Quantum Noise:
The quantum behavior of electromagnetic radiation must be taken into account at optical frequencies
since hf > KT and quantum fluctuations dominate over thermal fluctuations. The detection of light by
a photodiode is a discrete process, and the signal emerging from the detector is dictated by the
statistics of photon arrivals. Hence the statistics for monochromatic coherent radiation arriving at a
detector follow a discrete probability distribution which is independent of the number of photons
previously detected. It is found that the probability P(z) of detecting z photons in time period τ when
it is expected on average to detect zm photons obeys the Poission distribution:
𝑍𝑧
P(z) = 𝑍!𝑚 exp⁡
(−𝑍𝑚 ) where zm is equal to the variance of the probability distribution.
Zm = Po  / hf where, [Po/ hf] is the electron rate re generate by the incident photon.

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Optical receiver showing various sources of noise:

Photodetector Amplifier

Photodetection Avalanche gain Detector load Electronic Gain

hf bias
Electrical
Signals
Noise Noise Noise Noise
1.Quantum 1. Excess due 1. Thermal 1. Thermal
2. Dark Current to random ( input resistances)
3. Background gain 2. Device (active
4.Beat (from elements)
incoherent sources) 3. Surface leakage
currents

Figure 4.3: Block schematic of front end of an optical receiver showing the various
sources of noise

P-N junction and P-I-N Photodiode receiver:

RL
Ra AMP
hf Cd Ca

Detector Amplifier

Figure 4.4: Equivalent circuit for the front end of an optical fiber receiver

From figure 4.4, Ca is effective input capacitance, Ra is the resistance of an amplifier, Cd is detector
capacitance.
The two main sources of noise in photodiodes without internal gain are dark current noise and
quantum noise. Both of which are regarded as shot noise on the photocurrent and is given as:
i2TS = 2eB (Ip+ Id) where , e is the charge on an electron, Id is the dark current, Ip is photo current, B
is the post-detection (electrical) bandwidth of the system.
Taking into account the noise due to background radiation, the shot noise can be expanded as:
i2TS = 2eB (Ip+ Id + Ib) where, Ib is background-radiation-induced photocurrent.
When the photodiode is without internal avalanche gain, thermal noise from the detector load resistor
and from active elements in the amplifier tends to dominate.
The thermal noise due to load resistor RL is given as: i2t = 4KTB / RL
The SNR for the p-n or p-i-n photodiode receiver may be obtained by summing the noise
contributions from. It is given by:
𝑆 𝐼𝑝2
=
𝑁 2𝑒𝐵 𝐼 + 𝐼 + 4𝐾𝑇𝐵 + 𝐼 2
𝑃 𝑑 𝑅𝐿 𝑎𝑚𝑝
The thermal noise may be reduced by increasing the value of the load resistor RL, also, the noise
associated with the amplifier may be reduced with low detector and amplifier capacitance.
So, the SNR equation may be rewritten as:

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2
𝑆 𝐼𝑝
=
𝑁 2𝑒𝐵 𝐼 + 𝐼 + 4𝐾𝑇𝐵𝐹𝑛
𝑃 𝑑 𝑅𝐿
Where, Fn is the noise figure.

Avalanche photodiode (APD) receiver:

The internal gain mechanism in an APD increases the signal current into the amplifier and so
improves the SNR because the load resistance and amplifier noise remain unaffected (i.e. the thermal
noise and amplifier noise figure are unchanged). However, the dark current and quantum noise are
increased by the multiplication process and may become a limiting factor. Thus if the photocurrent is
increased by a factor M (mean avalanche multiplication factor), then the shot noise is also increased
by an excess noise factor Mx, such that the total shot noise i2SA is given by:
i2SA = 2eB(Ip +Id)M2+x
where x is between 0.3 to 0.5 for Silicon APDs and between 0.7 to 1.0 for germanium APDs.
The SNR for the APD may be obtained by summing the combined noise contribution from the load
resistor and the amplifier, which remains unchanged, with the modified shot noise term. Hence the
SNR for the APD is:
𝑆 𝑀2 𝐼𝑝2
=
𝑁 2𝑒𝐵 𝐼 + 𝐼 𝑀2+𝑥 + 4𝐾𝑇𝐵𝐹𝑛
𝑃 𝑑 𝑅𝐿

The combined thermal and amplifier noise term is reduced due to avalanche multiplication of shot
noise term, then the SNR for the APD can be rewritten as:
𝑆 𝐼𝑝2
=
𝑁 2𝑒𝐵 𝐼 + 𝐼 𝑀𝑥 + 4𝐾𝑇𝐵𝐹𝑛 𝑀−2
𝑃 𝑑 𝑅𝐿
From the above expression of SNR, it may be seen that the first term in the denominator increases
with increasing M whereas second term decreases. For low M, the combined amplifier and thermal
noise term dominates the total noise power when the signal level is increased, giving an improved
SNR. However, when M is large, the amplifier and thermal noise term becomes unimportant and the
SNR decreases with increasing M at the rate of Mx. Therefore, an optimum value of the
multiplication factor exists which minimizes the SNR and is given as:
[2eB(Ip +Id)Mxop ] / [(4KTBFn / RL) M-2op] = 2/x

And therefore; M2+x op = 4KTFn / xeRL (Ip + Id)

Digital Receivers Performance Calculation:

Bit Error Ratio (BER): The performance of digital receiver is measured by a parameter called the
Bit-Error Ratio (BER). The BER tells the fraction of the bits which are wrongly detected, i.e.
BER = No. of bits in error / Total No. of bits transmitted
OR
BER = Wrong bits per second/ Data rate in bits per second
For satisfactory performance the BER should be less than 109.

Figure 4.5 Binary Transmission: (a) Binary signal with additive noise (b) probability density
functions for the binary signal showing the decision case.

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The figure 4.5 shows the signal current when bit-0 is transmitted and when bit-1 is transmitted. The
figure also shows the probability density function of the current in the two binary states.
𝐼− 𝐼1 2 𝐼− 𝐼0 2
2𝜎12 2𝜎12
1 1
P1(x) = P(I/1) = 𝜎 𝑒 and P0(x) = P(I/0) = 𝜎 𝑒
1 √2𝜋 0 √2𝜋

Where P(0/1) is the probability of falsely identifying a binary one and P(1/0) is the probability of
falsely identifying a binary zero.
For BER calculation it is assumed that the noise is almost Gaussian with standard deviations 0 and
1 , and means I0 and I1 respectively for the 0 and 1 binary levels. For an optical receiver, in general
the two standard deviations are different. For thermal noise dominated system the two become same.
The decision threshold ITH is . That is : If I  ITH, bit =1 and If I < ITH, bit =0.
So a bit error occurs when bit 0 is transmitted and I  ITH and when bit 1 is transmitted and I < ITH .
The BER for an unbiased data ( a data which has statistically equal number of 0 and 1 bits), the BER
is given as: BER = ½ [ P(0/1) + P(1/0) ]
where P(0/1) is the probability of error in bit-1, i.e. probability of current remaining below the
threshold when actually bit-1 has been received. P(1/0) is the probability of error in bit-0, i.e.
probability of current becoming greater than or equal to the threshold when actually bit-0 has been
received.
The two probabilities are given as
𝟏 𝑰𝑻𝑯 𝑰−𝑰𝟏 𝟐
P(0/1) = 𝝈 − dI = ½ erfc[ (I1 – ITH) / 12 ] and
𝟏 √𝟐𝝅 −∞ 𝟐𝝈𝟐𝟏
𝟏 ∞ 𝑰−𝑰𝟎 𝟐
P(1/0) = 𝝈 − dI = ½ erfc[ (ITH – I0) / 02 ]
𝟎 √𝟐𝝅 𝑰 𝑻𝑯 𝟐𝝈𝟐𝟎
where the complementary error-function (erfc(x)) is defined as
∞
erfc(x) = 2/ 𝝅 𝒆𝒙𝒑 𝒚𝟐 𝒅𝒚
The BER for the binary data is then given as:
BER = ¼ {½ erfc[ (I1 – ITH) / 12 ] + ½ erfc[ (ITH – I0) / 02 ] }
The BER is function of the decision threshold current. The threshold is to be optimized to get the
minimum BER.
Minimum BER occurs when the threshold is ITHopt = (0I1 + 1I0) / (0 + 1)
For thermal dominated system, 0 and 1 are equal and the threshold is mean of I0 and I1. That is the
threshold is half way between the 0 and 1 levels.
For shot noise dominated system, 0 << 1 , and the threshold comes closer to I0 .
For the optimum threshold, the BER becomes, BER = ½ erfc ( Q/2)
Where Q is defined as, Q = (I1 – I0 ) / (0 + 1)
The quantity essentially gives the fractional noise margin of the received binary signal.
The BER is a very steep function of Q. For change in Q by 1, the BER drops almost by 3 orders of
magnitude. For a BER of better than 10-9, Q should be > 7.

Optical Fiber System Design:

System Design Factors: To achieve high-quality transmission, careful decisions based on operating
parameters apply for each component of a fiber optic transmission system.
Factors for Evaluating Fiber Optic System Design are as follows:
System Factors Considerations/ Choices
Type of Fiber Single-mode or Multimode
Dispersion Regenerators or Dispersion Compensation
Fiber Nonlinearities Fiber Charact., Wavelengths, and Transmitter Power
Operating Wavelength 780, 850, 1310, 1550 nm, and 1625 nm typical.
Transmitter Power Typically expressed in dBm.
Source Type LED or Laser
Receiver Sensitivity/Overload Charact. Typically expressed in dBm.
Detector Type PIN Diode, APD
Modulation Code AM, FM, PCM, or Digital
Bit Error Rate (BER) (Digital Systems Only) 10 -9, 10 -12 Typical

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System Factors Considerations/ Choices

Signal-to-Noise Ratio Specified in decibels (dB).
Number of Connectors Loss increases with the number of connectors.
Number of Splices Loss increases with the number of splices.
Environmental Requirements Humidity, Temperature, Exposure to Sunlight
Mechanical Requirements Flammability, Indoor/Outdoor Application

System Design Considerations:

In optical system design major consideration involves
1. Transmission characteristics of fiber (attenuation & dispersion).
2. Information transfer capability of fiber.
3. Terminal equipment & technology.
4. Distance of transmission.
System Considerations:
Before selecting suitable components, the operating wavelength for the system is decided. The
operating wavelength selection depends on the distance and attenuation. For shorter distance, the
800-900 nm region is preferred but for longer distance 100 or 1550 nm region is preferred due to
lower attenuations and dispersion.
The next step is selection of photo detector. While selecting a photo detector following factors are
considered:
1) Minimum optical power that must fall on photo detector to satisfy BER at specified data rate.
2) Complexity of circuit.
3) Cost of design.
4) Bias requirements.
Next step in system consideration is choosing a proper optical source. Important factors to consider
are: signal dispersion, data rate, transmission distance, cost, optical power coupling and circuit
complexity.
The last factor in system consideration is to selection of optical fiber between single mode and
Multimode fiber with step or graded index fiber. Fiber selection depends on type of optical source
and tolerable dispersion.
Some important factors for selection of fiber are:
1) Numerical Aperture (NA), as NA increases, the fiber coupled power increases also the Dispersion.
2) Attenuation characteristics.
3) Environmental induced losses e.g. due to temperature variation, moisture and dust etc.

System Performance:
System performance is decided by three major blocks they are transmitter, optical fiber links and
receiver. The designer should choose proper light source, proper optical fiber and proper photo
detector to get high bit rate and high S/N ratio.
Regarding optical fiber, the single mode step index fiber is the proper choice. Even in that to reduce
dispersion proper choice of the refractive index profile is necessary. These single mode step index
fibers are preferable.
Regarding optical sources, single mode laser diodes are suitable for single mode stop index fibers.
For multi mode fibers, hetero junction LEDs are selected.
Regarding optical receivers, the p-i-n photodiodes and avalanche photodiodes APD are preferable.
Here also they should be quantum noise limited.
The maximum transmission distance is limited by the net loss of fiber cable such that
L=10/α log10 (Pt/Pr)
α = not loss (in dB/1cm)
Pt=average power from transmitter
Pr=average power detected at receiver =Np hv B
Np=minimum no of photons/bit required
hv=energy of photon
B=bit rate

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Component Choice:
Fiber optic communications systems include components unfamiliar to most communications system
designers, but their design is based on principles that differ little from their conventional
counterparts. Link analysis is carried out in much the same way as for an electrical cable system. The
chief distinction results from the increased bandwidth capability with fiber optic systems, which
allows the design engineer to make different trade-offs in determining the optimum transmission
format as well as source, detector, and cable types.

Power Budgeting and Rise Time Budgeting:

Point-to-Point Links:
A point-to-point link comprises of one transmitter and a receiver system. This is the simplest form of
optical communication link and it sets the basis for examining complex optical communication links.
For analyzing the performance of any link following important aspects are to be considered.
a) Distance of transmission b) Channel data rate & 3) Bit error rate
All above parameters of transmission link are associated with the characteristics of various devices
employed in the link. Important components are shown in figure 4.6.

Transmitter Repeater Repeater Receiver

Figure 4.6: Block diagram Point-to-point link

When the link length extends between 20 to 100 km, losses associated with fiber cable increases. In
order to compensate the losses optical amplifier and regenerators are used over the span of fiber
cable. A regenerator is a receiver and transmitter pair which detects incoming optical signal, recovers
the bit stream electrically and again convert back into optical from by modulating an optical source.
An optical amplifier amplifies the optical bit stream without converting it into electrical form.
The spacing between two repeater or optical amplifier is called as repeater spacing (L). The repeater
spacing L depends on bit rate B. The bit rate-distance product (BL) is a measure of system
performance for point-to-point links.
The link design reduces to finding locations of the repeater on a long link.
Two important analysis for deciding performance of any fiber link are –
i) Link power budget / Power budget
ii) Rise time budget / Bandwidth budget

i) Link power budget / Power budget :

The figure 4.7 show the power loss model of an optical fiber link. The power is lost in various
components like, fiber, connectors, splicing.
Transmitter
Connector Receiver
Splices
Optical fiber
Optical Source

αf αf αf αf
lC lxp lxp lC lxp lC Photon Detector
Fiber Flylead

Figure 4.7: Power Loss Model

The fiber loss depends upon the wavelength and also the physical conditions of the fiber. The fiber
loss is generally higher than that the specified by the manufacturers. This is primarily due to micro-
bending of the fiber. Also the micro-bending loss is higher for 1550nm compared to 1310nm.
Therefore the overall loss could be higher at 1550nm than at 1310nm, although intrinsically silica
glass has minimum loss at 1550nm. Typical loss at 1550nm may lie in the range 0.4-0.5 dB/km.
The splice loss could be between 0.05-0.1 dB per splice.

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The connector loss is higher and could be 0.2-0.3 dB per connector.
Power Budget Calculation:
PS = Power from the transmitter in dBm
Pr = Sensitivity of the receiver in dBm for given BER
Maximum permissible loss, αmax = PS – Pr
αmax = αfiber + αconn + αsplice+ αsys
αfiber = αmax  (αconn + αsplice+ αsys )
Power limited link length: LPmax = αfiber / (Loss/km)
Beyond this distance the SNR is below the acceptable limit. System margin is generally taken to be 6
dB to accommodate deterioration of components over time.

Rise Time Budget Calculation:

Rise time analysis gives the effective bandwidth of the link.
Total system rise time, tsys = ( t2tx + D22L2 + t2rx)
For satisfactory operation of the link, tsys  0.7 Tb
Rise time limited link length, LRTmax = 1/D [ (0.7 Tb)2  ( t2tx + t2rx)1/2]
Beyond this distance the system response is unacceptable.
Rise time of the system or component = 1/ bandwidth
Here, tsys = total rise time; ttx = transmitter rise time; trx = receiver rise time. Generally trx >> ttx
D = dispersion of fiber;  = spectral width of transmitter; L= length;
Tb = data bit duration = 1/data rate.
Note that for RZ data, the system rise time, tsys should be  0.35 Tb.
The repeater has to be installed at a distance, min(LPmax, LRTmax)
Generally, the links are power limited and the repeaters are installed at LPmax. Typical
repeater length is about 50-60 km in practice.

Fiber Joints:
A major consideration with all types of fiber–fiber connection is the optical loss encountered at the
interface. Even when the two jointed fiber ends are smooth and perpendicular to the fiber axes, and
the two fiber axes are perfectly aligned, a small proportion of the light may be reflected back into the
transmitting fiber causing attenuation at the joint. This phenomenon, known as Fresnel reflection, is
associated with the step changes in refractive index at the jointed interface (i.e. glass–air–glass). The
magnitude of this partial reflection of the light transmitted through the interface may be estimated
using the Fresnel formula for light of normal incidence and is given by :
r = [(n1 – n) /( n1 + n)]2 where r is the fraction of the light reflected at a single interface, n1 is the
refractive index of the fiber core and n is the refractive index of the medium between the two jointed
fibers (i.e. for air n = 1).
The loss in decibels due to Fresnel reflection at a single interface is given by:
Loss Fres = 10 Log10 ( 1- r)
Hence, using the relationships given in equations, it is possible to determine the optical attenuation
due to Fresnel reflection at a fiber–fiber joint.
Fiber Splicing techniques:
A permanent joint formed between two individual optical fibers in the field or factory is known as a
fiber splice. Fiber splicing is frequently used to establish long-haul optical fiber links where smaller
fiber lengths need to be joined, and there is no requirement for repeated connection and
disconnection. Splices may be divided into two broad categories depending upon the splicing
technique utilized. These are fusion splicing or welding and mechanical splicing.

Fusion Splicing:
The fusion splicing of single fibers involves the heating of the two prepared fiber ends to their fusing
point with the application of sufficient axial pressure between the two optical fibers. It is therefore
essential that the stripped (of cabling and buffer coating) fiber ends are adequately positioned and
aligned in order to achieve good continuity of the transmission medium at the junction point. Hence
the fibers are usually positioned and clamped with the aid of an inspection microscope.
Flame heating sources, the most widely used heating source is an electric arc. This technique offers
advantages of consistent, easily controlled heat with adaptability for use under field conditions.

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Figure 4.8 shows a development of the basic arc fusion process which involves the rounding of the
fiber ends with a low-energy discharge before pressing the fibers together and fusing with stronger
arc. This technique, known as prefusion. It has been utilized with multimode fibers giving average
splice losses of 0.09 dB .

Electrode Electrode

Fiber Fiber Fiber Fiber

Electrode Electrode
Electric Arc

(a) Initial Setting (b) Arrangement of smooth surface by prefusion

Electrode Electrode
Move
Fiber Fiber Fiber Fiber

Electrode Electrode
Electric Arc

(c) Pressed Together (d) Accomplishment of splice

Figure 4.8: Schematic illustration of the prefusion method for accurately splicing optical fibers
Drawbacks of fusion splicing: Heat necessary to fuse the fibers may weaken the fiber in the area of
the splice. The tensile strength becomes low, around 30% compared with uncoated fiber before
fusion. It is therefore necessary that completed splice is packed so as to reduce the tensile loading
upon the fiber in the area of splice.

Mechanical Splices:
A common method involves the use of an accurately produced rigid alignment tube into which the
prepared fiber ends are permanently bonded. This snug tube splice is shown in figure 4.9 (a) and may
utilize a glass or ceramic capillary with an inner diameter just large enough to accept the optical
fibers. Transparent adhesive (e.g. epoxy resin) is injected through a transverse bore in the capillary to
give mechanical sealing and index matching of the splice. Average insertion losses as low as 0.1 dB
have been obtained with multimode graded index and single-mode fibers using ceramic capillaries.
However, in general, snug tube splices exhibit problems with capillary tolerance requirements.

Fiber Fiber

Glass or ceramic capillary Square capillary

Figure 4.9 (a): Snug Tube Splice Figure 4.9 (b): Loose Tube Splice

A mechanical splicing technique which avoids the critical tolerance requirements of the snug tube
splice is shown in figure 4.9(b). This loose tube splice uses an oversized square-section metal tube
which easily accepts the prepared fiber ends. Transparent adhesive is first inserted into the tube
followed by the fibers. The splice is self-aligning when the fibers are curved in the same plane,
forcing the fiber ends simultaneously into the same corner of the tube. Mean splice insertion losses of
0.073 dB have been achieved using multimode graded index fibers with the loose tube approach.

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Other common mechanical splicing techniques involve the use of grooves to secure the fibers to be
jointed. A simple method utilizes a V-groove into which the two prepared fiber ends are pressed. The
V-groove splice which is shown in figure 4.9(c) ,gives alignment of the prepared fiber ends through
insertion in the groove. The splice is made permanent by securing the fibers in the V-groove with
epoxy resin. Jigs for producing Vgroove splices have proved quite successful, giving joint insertion
losses of around 0.1 dB.

Epoxy

V-groove Fiber butted together

substrate Figure 4.9 (d): Elastomeric splice cross-section
Figure 4.9 (c): Snug Tube Splice

A further variant on the V-groove technique is the elastic tube or elastomeric splice shown in figure
4.9 (d). The device comprises two elastomeric internal parts, one of which contains a V-groove. An
outer sleeve holds the two elastic parts in compression to ensure alignment of the fibers in the V-
groove, and fibers with different diameters tend to be centered and hence may be successfully
spliced. The splice loss for the elastic tube device was originally reported as 0.12 dB or less but is
generally specified as around 0.25 dB for the commercial product. In addition, index-matching gel is
normally employed within the device to improve its performance.

Fiber Connectors:
In order to maintain an optimum performance, the connection must protect the fiber ends from
damage which may occur due to handling (connection and disconnection), must be insensitive to
environmental factors (e.g. moisture and dust) and must cope with tensile load on the cable.
Additionally, the connector should ideally be a low-cost component which can be fitted with relative
ease. Optical fiber connectors may be considered in three major areas, which are:
1) the fiber termination, which protects and locates the fiber ends.
2) the fiber end alignment to provide optimum optical coupling.
3) the outer shell, which maintains the connection and the fiber alignment, protects the fiber ends
from the environment and provides adequate strength at the joint.
Fiber connectors may be separated into two broad categories: butt-jointed connectors and expanded
beam connectors. Butt-jointed connectors rely upon alignment of the two prepared fiber ends in close
proximity (butted) to each other so that the fiber core axes coincide. Expanded beam connectors
utilize interposed optics at the joint (i.e. lenses) in order to expand the beam from the transmitting
fiber end before reducing it again to a size compatible with the receiving fiber end.
Cylindrical Ferrule Butt-joint Connector:
The basic ferrule connector (also known as concentric sleeve connector), which is the simplest
optical fiber connector design. The two fibers to be connected are permanently bonded (with epoxy
resin) in metal plugs known as ferrules which have an accurately drilled central hole in their end
faces where the stripped (of buffer coating) fiber is located. Within the connector the two ferrules are
placed in an alignment sleeve which, using accurately machined components, allows the fiber ends to
be butt jointed. It is essential with this type of connector that the fiber end faces are smooth and
square (i.e. perpendicular to the fiber axis).
Figure 4.10 shows the structure of a watch jewel connector ferrule. In this, the fiber is centered with
respect to the ferrule through the watch jewel hole. The use of the watch jewel allows the close
diameter and tolerance requirements of the ferrule end face hole to be obtained. Nevertheless, typical
concentricity errors between the fiber core and the outside diameter of the jeweled ferrule are in the
range 2 to 6 μm giving insertion losses in the range 1 to 2 dB with multimode step index fibers.

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Stainless steel ferrule

Bare fiber
Adhesive

Adhesive

Plastic coating of
Watch Jewel fiber

Figure 4.10: Structure of a watch jewel connector ferrule

Table showing the fiber-connector types:
TYPE Insertion Loss Features and Applications
(dB)
A slotted screw-on connector; preferred in multimode fiber, data
SMA 1.00 - 1.50
communication, multimedia and instrumentation connections
A push-on, pull-off type of dual connector, used in multimode
FDDI 0.20 – 0.70
fiber in LANs.
A slotted screw-on type of multimode and single-mode fiber
D4 0.30 - 1.00 connector; used for data communications, instrumentation
connections and telecommunication applications.
A slotted bayonet (push-in, twist-out) type of metallic multimode
or single mode fiber connector with a ceramic ferrule; widely
ST 0.20 – 0.50
used in inter/intra building, data communication and also
telecommunication applications.
SC A push-on, pull-off type of multimode or single-mode connector
(Simplex 0.20 – 0.45 with a ceramic ferrule and an SFF design in a simplex or a duplex
& Duplex) plastic housing; often used for LANs and data communication
A push-on, pull-off type of connector, mostly preferred for single-
mode fiber operation; SFF(Small form factor) and SFP (small
ES2000 0.12 – 0.30
form pluggable) designs similar to the SC type but also contains
an eye protection safety cover built into the end face
A push-on, pull-off type of connector with two (or more) fibers in
a single plastic ferrule where the housing uses the standard RJ 45
MT-RJ 0.25 – 0.75 latch mechanism; it can connect up to 72 fibers, and it is suitable
for both local and metropolitan area networks, particularly with
high density interconnections.
A push-on, pull-off type of connector for multifiber ribbon cable
MTP/MPO 0.25 – 1.00 (4 to 72 fibers) based on multiple MT–RJ connectors in a plastic
housing and used for high density interconnections.

Expanded Beam Connectors:

An alternative to connection via direct butt joints between optical fibers is offered by the principle of
the expanded beam. Fiber connection utilizing this principle is shown in figure 4.11, which shows a
connector consisting of two lenses for collimating and refocusing the light from one fiber into the
other. The use of these interposed optics makes the achievement of lateral alignment much less
critical than with a butt-jointed fiber connector.
Expanded beam connectors are useful for multi fiber connection.

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Optical fiber Optical fiber

Lenses
Figure 4.11: Schematic of an expanded beam connector showing the
principle of operation

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