There are three basic elements of a fibre optic cable. The core, the cladding and the coating.
Core is the light transmission area of the fibre cable, either glass or plastic. The larger the core, the more light will be transmitted into the fibre.
The function of the cladding is to provide a lower refractive index at the core interface in order to cause reflection within the core so that light waves are transmitted through the fibre.
Coatings are usually multi-layers of plastic applied to preserve fibre strength, absorb shock and provide extra fibre protection. These buffer coatings are available from 250 microns to 900 microns.
The size of the optical fibre cable is commonly referred to by the outer diameter of its core, cladding and coating. Example: 50/125/250 indicates a fiber with a core of 50 microns, cladding of 125 microns, and a coating of 250 microns.
There are two basic types of fibre: multimode and single-mode. Multimode fibre cores may be either step index or graded index. The single mode has a higher capacity and capability than either of the two multimode types. For example, undersea telecommunications cables can convey 60,000 voice channels on a pair of single mode fibres.
Considerations of tensile strength, ruggedness, durability, flexibility, size and resistance to the environment, flammability, temperature range and appearance are important in optical fibre cables.
Fibre optic cable is the medium on which the broadband technology is based. Fibre optic cables have the ability to transmit multiple pieces of data simultaneously and to carry signals from different network carriers. It is simply amazing to see the many uses of Fibre optic cables.
For more information on buying different types of Fibre optic cables from leading manufacturers, log onto www.mayflex.com