optical Fibres
optical fibres
Facts andFigures
Hollow core fibres
Optical fibre fabrication
our use of optical fibres
Extras
Videos and research papers
Optical fibre fabrication is making something on a large scale and then drawing it down to something much smaller. This is achieved by heating and pulling silica glass, with a polymer plastic coating applied to protect the drawn fibre. Fibres are incredibly strong when protected but can easily break when the surface is scratched or damaged. Microstructured fibres like the ones used in u-Care require more work to assemble and maintain the structure while drawing, but have the same principle.
Optical fibres are thin and flexible fibres of generally glass (sometimes plastic) which are uses to transport light from one location to another. They are used in the telecommunications industry to deliver information in the form of short pulses of light along long distances. While Telecommuncations are the biggest market, with ~ 500 million km made per year, there are also many other fields such as medicine, sensing and research applications.
In u-Care we use optical fibres for a range of applications, from generating the UV light to delivering it to patients. The small internal structures, on the scale of blood cells and viruses, allow the generation of new frequencies and colours when combined with powerful lasers.
The flexible and strong fibres are ideal to deliver and survive the high power UV light used to destroy bacteria and cancer cells. To achieve this we use a hollow core fibre, which avoids damage that a solid core fibre would entail. This requires a careful arrangement of thin glass walls to confine the light.
A hollow-core fiber is a type of optical fiber that features a central core which is either empty (air-filled) or filled with another low-refractive-index material instead of the solid glass or plastic typically used in conventional optical fibers.
Structure and Composition
- Central Hollow Core: The core of the fiber is hollow, allowing light to propagate through the air or another low-refractive-index medium rather than solid glass or plastic.
- Cladding: Surrounding the hollow core is a structured cladding, often made of photonic bandgap materials or other microstructured designs, which guide the light within the core through mechanisms like photonic bandgap effects or anti-resonant effects.
Advantages Reduced Signal Loss: Hollow-core fibers can exhibit lower attenuation for certain wavelengths compared to traditional solid-core fibers, particularly in the mid-infrared range. Lower Nonlinear Effects: The lower material interaction in the hollow core reduces nonlinear effects, making these fibers advantageous for high-power laser transmission. Higher Speed and Bandwidth: Potential for higher transmission speeds and bandwidths due to reduced scattering and absorption.
Research papers
Axi-Stack: a method for manufacturing freeform air-silica optical fibre
Speed of Light: Optical fibers transmit data at nearly the speed of light. This makes them incredibly efficient for long-distance communication with minimal delay.Hair-Thin: The core of an optical fiber is extremely thin, often comparable in diameter to a human hair. Despite this, it can carry vast amounts of data. Underwater Highways: Submarine optical fiber cables crisscross the ocean floors, forming the backbone of global internet connectivity. These cables connect continents and allow for instant communication around the world. Miles of Fiber: If you laid out all the optical fiber cables in the world end-to-end, they could circle the Earth many times. There are millions of miles of optical fiber installed globally.
Light Bouncing: Light traveling through an optical fiber bounces off the walls of the core, thanks to total internal reflection. This bouncing keeps the light signal contained within the fiber. Medical Marvels: Optical fibers are used in endoscopes, allowing doctors to see inside the human body without invasive surgery. This technology has revolutionized medical diagnostics and treatment.
Fibres RSSSE Infographics
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Created on June 7, 2024
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Transcript
optical Fibres
optical fibres
Facts andFigures
Hollow core fibres
Optical fibre fabrication
our use of optical fibres
Extras
Videos and research papers
Optical fibre fabrication is making something on a large scale and then drawing it down to something much smaller. This is achieved by heating and pulling silica glass, with a polymer plastic coating applied to protect the drawn fibre. Fibres are incredibly strong when protected but can easily break when the surface is scratched or damaged. Microstructured fibres like the ones used in u-Care require more work to assemble and maintain the structure while drawing, but have the same principle.
Optical fibres are thin and flexible fibres of generally glass (sometimes plastic) which are uses to transport light from one location to another. They are used in the telecommunications industry to deliver information in the form of short pulses of light along long distances. While Telecommuncations are the biggest market, with ~ 500 million km made per year, there are also many other fields such as medicine, sensing and research applications.
In u-Care we use optical fibres for a range of applications, from generating the UV light to delivering it to patients. The small internal structures, on the scale of blood cells and viruses, allow the generation of new frequencies and colours when combined with powerful lasers.
The flexible and strong fibres are ideal to deliver and survive the high power UV light used to destroy bacteria and cancer cells. To achieve this we use a hollow core fibre, which avoids damage that a solid core fibre would entail. This requires a careful arrangement of thin glass walls to confine the light.
A hollow-core fiber is a type of optical fiber that features a central core which is either empty (air-filled) or filled with another low-refractive-index material instead of the solid glass or plastic typically used in conventional optical fibers.
Structure and Composition
Advantages Reduced Signal Loss: Hollow-core fibers can exhibit lower attenuation for certain wavelengths compared to traditional solid-core fibers, particularly in the mid-infrared range. Lower Nonlinear Effects: The lower material interaction in the hollow core reduces nonlinear effects, making these fibers advantageous for high-power laser transmission. Higher Speed and Bandwidth: Potential for higher transmission speeds and bandwidths due to reduced scattering and absorption.
Research papers
Axi-Stack: a method for manufacturing freeform air-silica optical fibre
Speed of Light: Optical fibers transmit data at nearly the speed of light. This makes them incredibly efficient for long-distance communication with minimal delay.Hair-Thin: The core of an optical fiber is extremely thin, often comparable in diameter to a human hair. Despite this, it can carry vast amounts of data. Underwater Highways: Submarine optical fiber cables crisscross the ocean floors, forming the backbone of global internet connectivity. These cables connect continents and allow for instant communication around the world. Miles of Fiber: If you laid out all the optical fiber cables in the world end-to-end, they could circle the Earth many times. There are millions of miles of optical fiber installed globally.
Light Bouncing: Light traveling through an optical fiber bounces off the walls of the core, thanks to total internal reflection. This bouncing keeps the light signal contained within the fiber. Medical Marvels: Optical fibers are used in endoscopes, allowing doctors to see inside the human body without invasive surgery. This technology has revolutionized medical diagnostics and treatment.