FIBRE OPTICS

Introduction:

An optical fiber is a flexible, transparent fiber made of high quality glass (silica) or plastic,
slightly thicker than a human hair. It can function as a waveguide, or “light pipe”, to transmit
light between the two ends of the fiber. The branch of physics which deals with the transmission
and reception of light waves using optical fibers, which acts as guiding media, is known as fiber
optics.

STRUCTURE OF AN OPTICAL FIBRE:

The basic structure of an optical fiber consists of three parts; the core,the cladding, and
the buffer or protecting skin. Light propagatesmainly along the core of the fiber. The core is
generally made of glass.The refractive index of core is represented by n1 its typical value is1.62.
The core is surrounded by a layer called the cladding with lessrefractive index than core. The
cladding is generally made ofglass/plastic. The refractive index of cladding is represented by n2
itstypical value is 1.52.For extra protection, the
cladding is enclosed inan additional layer called buffer.
The buffer is a layer of material usedto protect an
optical fiber from physical damage.

PRINCIPLE OF AN OPTICAL FIBRE

The light launched inside the core through its one end propagates to the other end due to
total internalreflection at the core cladding interface. This is the principle of optical fiber. Total
internal reflection at thefiber wall can occur only if the following two conditions are met.

1. The refractive index of the core material n1 must be higher than that of the cladding n2 .
2. At the core-cladding interface the angle of incidence i must be greater than critical angle.
When light travels from core of refractive index n1 to cladding of refractive index n2 ,
refraction occurs (Fig (a)). Since theangle of incidence is less than the critical angle. With
increase in angle of incidence the angle of refraction alsoincreases and for a particular angle of
incidence the refracted ray just grazes the interface between the core andcladding (Fig. b). This
angle of incidence is known as critical angle. When the angle of incidence is further
increased,the ray is reflected back into the core at the interface obeying the law of reflection (Fig.
c). Thisphenomenonis called astotal internal refection.

ACCEPTANCE ANGLE AND ACCEPTANCE CONE:

When the light beam focused into a fiber at its one end, the entire light may not pass
through the core andpropagate. Only the rays which make the angle of incidence greater than
critical angle at the core-claddinginterface undergo total internal reflection and propagate
through the core. The other rays are refracted to thecladding and are lost. Hence it is very
essential to know upto what angle one has to launch the beam at its endto enable the entire light
to pass through the core. This maximum angle of launch is called acceptance a ngle.

Acceptance angle is defined as the maximum angle of incidence at the interface of air
medium and core medium for which the light ray enters into the core and travels along the
interface of core and cladding.
Above figure shows a longitudinal cross sectional view of the launch end of a fiber with a
ray entering it. Thelight is launched from a medium of refractive index n0 (n0 = 1 for air) into
core of refractive index n1 . The rayenters with an angle of incidence αi to the fiber end face at
point A and proceeds with an angle of refraction αr. Itthen strikes the core-cladding interface
with an internal incidence angle θ at point B.

Let us now find upto what value of αi at A, total internal reflection at B is possible.Applying
Snell‟s law at the entrance i.e., at point A, we get;
n0 𝑆𝑖𝑛𝛼𝑖 = n1 𝑆𝑖𝑛𝛼𝑟

𝑆𝑖𝑛𝛼𝑖 /𝑆𝑖𝑛𝛼𝑟 = n1 / n0

𝑆𝑖𝑛𝛼𝑖 /𝑆𝑖𝑛 (90-) = n1 / n0

𝑆𝑖𝑛𝛼𝑖 /Cos = n1 / n0

𝑆𝑖𝑛 𝛼 = (n1 / n0 ) Cos

If θ is less than critical angle θ c, the ray will be lost by refraction into core. In order to retain the
beam inside thecore, θ must be greater than θc.

Let αi-max be the maximum possible launching angle at A for which θ is equal to θ c at B.
Then above equation (1) becomes
𝑆𝑖𝑛𝛼𝑖−𝑚𝑎𝑥 = (n1 / n0 ) Cosθc

Now Applying Snell‟s law at the core-cladding interface i.e., at point B, we get;

𝑆𝑖𝑛𝜃𝑐 / 𝑆𝑖𝑛 90 = n2 / n1

𝑆𝑖𝑛𝜃𝑐= n2 / n1
𝑛 22 𝑛 21 −𝑛 22 𝑛 21 −𝑛 22
We know that 𝐶𝑜𝑠 𝜃𝑐 =(1 − 𝑆𝑖𝑛2𝜃c)1/2= 1− = =
𝑛 21 𝑛 21 𝑛1
Substituting the value of Cosθ c in equation (2) we get

𝑛 21 −𝑛 22 𝑛 21 −𝑛 22 𝑛 21 −𝑛 22
𝑆𝑖𝑛𝛼𝑖−𝑚𝑎𝑥 = (n1 / n0 ) = =
𝑛1 𝑛0 𝑛0

𝑛 21 −𝑛 22
𝛼𝑖−𝑚𝑎𝑥= sin−1 𝑛0

This maximum launching angle is called the acceptance angle. Rotating the acceptance
angle about the fiberaxis,acceptance cone of the fiber is formed. Light launched at the fiber end
within this acceptance cone alonewill be accepted and propagated to the other end of the fiber by
total internal reflection.

NUMERICAL APERTURE

Light collection capacity of the fiber is expressed in terms of acceptance angle using the
terminology „Numericalaperture‟. Sine of the acceptance angle is called the numerical aperture
(NA) of the fiber.

Numerical Aperture 𝑁𝐴 = 𝑆𝑖𝑛(𝐴𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑝𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒𝐴𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒) = 𝑆𝑖𝑛𝛼𝑖−𝑚𝑎𝑥

𝑛 21 −𝑛 22 𝑛 21 −𝑛 22
−1
= sin sin =
𝑛0 𝑛0

If the air is the launching medium n0 = 1, NA = 𝑛21 − 𝑛22

NA in terms of fractional change in refractive index Δ

Δ is defined as the ratio of difference of refractive indices to the refractive index of core
Δ=𝑛1 − 𝑛2/𝑛1 ; 1 − 𝑛2 = Δ𝑛1

𝑁𝐴 = 𝑛21 − 𝑛22 = (𝑛1 + 𝑛2 )(𝑛1 – 𝑛2 ) = (𝑛1 + 𝑛2 )∆𝑛1

= 2𝑛1 ∆𝑛1 (Since 𝑛1 ≅ 𝑛2)

= n1 2∆

It should be noted that the numerical aperture of a fiber i.e., its light collecting capacity is
effectively dependent only on the refractive indices of the core and cladding materials and is not
a function of the fiber dimensions.

CLASSIFICATION OF OPTICAL FIBERS:

We can classify based on the material with which they are made of, Number of modes (path) of
propagation of signals and refractive index profile.

CLASSIFICATION OF OPTICAL FIBERS

1. MATERIAL (i) Glass Optical Fibers

(ii) Plastic Optical Fibers

2. NUMBER OF MODES
(i) Single Mode Optical Fibers
(ii) Multi-Mode Optical Fibers

3. REFRACTIVE INDEX PROFILES

(i) Step Index Optical Fibers
(ii) Graded Index Optical Fibers

1. Optical fibe rs based on materials :

Optical fibers are made up of materials like silica and plastic. The basic optical fiber material
must have the following properties:
(i) Efficient guide for the light waves
(ii) Low scattering losses
(iii) The absorption, attenuation and dispersion of optical energy must be low.
Based on the material used for fabrication, they are classified into two types:(i) Glass optical
fibers and (ii) Plastic optical fibers.

(i)Glass optical fibers: Glass optical fibers are almost always made from silica. Silica exhibits
fairly good opticaltransmission over a wide range of wavelengths.Silica glass can be doped with
various materials. One purpose of doping is to raise the refractive index (e.g. with Germanium
dioxide (GeO2), P2 O 5 or Aluminium oxide (Al2O3)) or to lower it (e.g. with fluorine or Boron
trioxide(B2O3), P2O3).
Silica (glass)optical fiber has many optical applications, such as communications, fiber
lasers, fiber amplifiers,and fiber-optic sensors. Large efforts put forth in the development of
various types of silica fibers have furtherincreased the performance of such fibers over other
material.
Examples:
 SiO 2 core; P2 O3 – SiO2 cladding
 GeO 2 – SiO2 core; SiO 2 cladding
 P2 O5 – SiO2 core; SiO 2 cladding
(ii)Plastic optical fibe rs: Plastic optical fibre (POF) is a low cost and easy to use for short
distance applicationslike local area network. The diameter of POF is far larger than those of glass
optical fiber. Therefore it is easierto connect critical alignments with POFs. The base materials in
POF are PMMA, Teflon, polystyrene, siliconresins and fluoropolymers. These make POF
durable and flexible than glass fibre. The drawback is that theylimit its use to about 100 meter.
The reason is substantially higher attenuation.
Examples:
 A polymethyl methacrylate core (n1 =1.59) and a cladding made of its co-polymer (n2 =1.40).
 A polysterene core (n1 =1.60) and a methyl methacrylate cladding (n2 =1.49).
2. Optical fibe rs based on modes or mode types :

Mode is the one which describes the nature of propagation of electromagnetic waves in a
wave guide.It is the allowed direction whose associated angles satisfy the conditions for total
internal reflection and constructive interference.
Based on the number of modes that propagates through the optical fiber, they are c lassified as:
i) Single mode fibers and ii) Multi mode fibers.

i) Single mode fibers:

In a fiber, if only one mode is transmitted through it, then it is said to be a single mode fiber.
A typical single mode fiber may have a core radius of 3 μm and a numerical aperture of 0.1 at a
wavelength of 0.8 μm.
Here, n = refractive index of the core; a = radius of the core; λ = wavelength of the light
1
propagating through the fiber; Δ = relative refractive indices difference.

V

2πn1 a 2 

The condition for the single mode operation is given by the V number of the fiber which is
defined as such that V ≤ 2.405.
The single mode fiber has the following characteristics:

• Only one path is available.

• V-number is less than 2.405
• Core diameter is small
• No dispersion
• Higher band width (1000 MHz)
• Used for long haul communication
• Fabrication is difficult and costly

ii) Multi mode fibers :

If more than one mode is transmitted through optical fiber, then it is said to be a multimode fiber.
The larger core radii of multimode fibers make it easier to launch optical power into the fiber and
facilitate the end to end connection of similar powers.
Some of the basic prope rties of multimode optical fibers:
 More than one path is available
 V-number is greater than 2.405
 Core diameter is higher
 Higher dispersion
 Lower bandwidth (50MHz)
 Used for short distance communication
 Fabrication is less difficult and not costly

iii) Optical fibers based on refractive index profile :

Based on the refractive index profile of the core and cladding, the optical fibers are
classified into two types:
i) Step index fiber and ii) Graded index fiber

Step index fiber :

In a step index fiber, the refractive index changes in a step fashion, from the centre of the
fiber, the core, to the outer shell, the cladding. It is high in the core and lower in the
cladding. The light in the fiber propagates by bouncing back and forth from core-cladding
interface.

The step index fibers propagate both single and multimode signals within the fiber core.
The light rays propagating through it are in the form of meridinal rays which will cross
the fiber core axis during every reflection at the core – cladding boundary and are
propagating in a zig – zag manner.
ii) Graded index fiber

The refractive index of core is not constant but decreases gradually from the centre of
core axis to the surface of the core-cladding interface.
The refractive index profile is shown in figure it is circularly
symmetric. As refractive index changes continuous radially
outwards in core,the light rays suffer continuous refraction rather
Total internal reflection. Therefore light propagates in helical
manner. These rays are called skew rays or helical rays. These rays
never cross the fiber axis at any time and propagate around fiber
axis. Different rays travels with different speeds in different parts of
the fiber core. Near the surface of the core the refractive index is
low, so the speed of light rays are more, but near the core axis
refractive index is high, so the light rays travels with less speed.
Hence all the rays reach the end face simultaneously.In this kind of
optical fiber, LEDs are used as optical source; the N.A. is less;
Attenuation of signals is also less.

Applications of Optical Fibers

Fiber optic cables find many uses. Some of them include:

Medical: Used as light guides, imaging tools and also as lasers for surgeries

Defense/Government: Used as hydrophones for seismic and SONAR uses, as wiring in aircraft,
submarines and other vehicles and also for field networking

Telecommunications: Fiber is laid and used for transmitting and receiving purposes

Networking: Used to connect users and servers in a variety of network settings and help increase the
speed and accuracy of data transmission
Industrial/Commercial: Used for imaging in hard to reach areas, as wiring where EMI is an issue, as
sensory devices to make temperature, pressure and other measurements, and as wiring in automobiles
and in industrial settings

Broadcast/CATV: Broadcast/cable companies are using fiber optic cables for wiring CATV, HDTV,
internet, video on-demand and other applications

Fiber optic cables are used for lighting and imaging and as sensors to measure and monitor a vast array
of variables. Fiber optic cables are also used in research and development and testing across all the
above mentioned industries.

Numerical Problems

1. The numerical aperture of an optical fiber is 0.5 and refractive index of core is
1.54(a) find R.I. of cladding (b) calculate the change in core cladding refractive
index per unit R.I. of the core.
𝑁𝐴 = 𝑛21 − 𝑛22

2. Calculate the numerical aperture and acceptance angle of optical fibre of refractive
indices for core and cladding as 1.62 and 1.52 respectively.
Solution:

3. The refractive indices for core and cladding for a step index fibre are 1.52 and 1.41
respectively. Calculate (i)critical angle (ii)numerical aperture and (iii)the maximum
incidence angle.
Solution: