What is the difference between optical fiber and optical cable? What are the common optical fiber connectors?
Optical fiber is a medium that transmits information from one end to another. It is a glass or plastic fiber that serves as a transmission medium for the passage of information. Generally, the terms &
Optical fiber is a medium that transmits information from one end to another. It is a glass or plastic fiber that serves as a transmission medium for the passage of information.
Generally, the terms "optical fiber" and "optical cable" are often confused. Most optical fibers must be covered by several layers of protective structure before use, and the covered cable is called an "optical cable." The protective structure on the outer layer of the optical fiber prevents damage to the fiber from the surrounding environment, such as water, fire, electric shock, etc. The optical cable is divided into: optical fiber, buffer layer, and jacket. Optical fiber is similar to coaxial cable, except that there is no mesh shielding layer. The center is a glass core for light transmission. In multimode fiber, the core diameter is 15mm50mm, roughly equivalent to the thickness of a human hair. The core diameter of single-mode fiber is 8mm10mm. The core is surrounded by a glass cladding with a lower refractive index than the core, so as to keep the light within the core. Outside that is a thin plastic jacket used to protect the cladding. Optical fibers are usually bundled together and protected by an outer sheath. The fiber core is usually a double-layer concentric cylinder with a very small cross-sectional area made of quartz glass. It is brittle and prone to breakage, so an additional protective layer is required.
Fiber Connectors
FC Round with thread (most commonly used on distribution frames)
ST Snap-in round type
SC Snap-in square type (most commonly used on routers and switches)
PC Micro-spherical grinding and polishing
APC Polished at an 8-degree angle with micro-spherical grinding
MT-RJ Square type, dual-fiber transmit/receive integrated in one connector
Fiber Optic Connectors
Fiber optic connectors are devices that enable detachable (removable) connections between optical fibers. They precisely align the two end faces of the fibers so that the optical energy output from the transmitting fiber can be coupled into the receiving fiber to the maximum extent, while minimizing the impact on the system caused by their insertion into the optical link. This is the basic requirement of fiber optic connectors. To a certain extent, fiber optic connectors also affect the reliability and various performance aspects of optical transmission systems.
Fiber optic connectors can be classified by transmission medium into common silica-based single-mode and multimode connectors, as well as other types using plastic or other media for transmission. By connector structure, they can be divided into various forms: FC, SC, ST, LC, D4, DIN, MU, MT, etc. Among them, ST connectors are typically used at cabling equipment ends, such as optical distribution frames and optical modules, while SC and MT connectors are typically used at network equipment ends. By fiber end-face shape, they are classified as FC, PC (including SPC or UPC), and APC. By fiber core count, they are divided into single-core and multi-core (such as MT-RJ) types. Fiber optic connectors are widely used and come in a great variety. In practical applications, we generally distinguish them according to the different structures of fiber optic connectors.