Everything You Need to Know About Fiber Optic Connectors

For high-speed data transmission, optical fiber is a good vehicle but only when the light transmission is efficient across connector assemblies. This translates to the requirement of fiber polishing pad connector end faces to optimize performance. Increasingly, automation of the polishing process is becoming a necessity with the adoption of newer fiber configurations, as well as ever-tightening specifications.

Early physical contact connectors required the spherical forming of their flat end faces as part of the polishing procedure. A four-step process is included under traditional techniques: epoxy removal, ferrule forming, and preliminary and final polishing. For epoxy removal and ferrule forming these steps used aggressive materials that are generally accomplished with diamond polishing films.

Now, the polishing process has developed into a sequence of epoxy removal, followed by rough, intermediate, and final polishing cycles as almost all connectors are manufactured with a pre-radiused end face. One main goal is to avoid excessive disruption of the spherical surface, while still producing a good mating surface. Polished fiber optic connectors then need to conform to a range of performance and geometry-based acceptance criteria.

In two categories the polishing specifications for fiber polishing film connectors are included and they are related to performance and end-face geometry. Back reflection and insertion loss specifications are perhaps the most critical measures of polished end functionality. The latter is the amount of optical power that is lost at the interface between the connectors that usually occur by fiber misalignment, the separation between connections (the air gap), and the finish quality of each connector end. The current standard loss specification is less than 0.5 dB, but less than 0.3 dB is increasingly specified.

Regardless of the connector type, most polishing sequences have now started with aggressive materials, including silicon carbide that removes epoxy and diamond lapping films for beginning and intermediate polishing. These then at the same rate remove both surrounding material and fiber. The last polishing step, however, needs a less aggressive material, such as silicon dioxide, to attack only the fiber. For final fiber polishing liquid using a material that is too aggressive could lead to excessive undercut. The wrong final-polish material can lead to excessive protrusion, then to fiber chipping and cracking during the connector mating process.

Caring For Your Polishing Fixtures for Optical Fiber Polishing Machines

The most critical step In the process of fiber optic cable assembly is assuring high-quality assemblies for meeting specifications is the polishing process. So it becomes very much necessary to choose the right optical fiber polishing pad and polishing fixtures that meet your requirements.

For your company, the quality of the polishing fixtures (also called polishing plates or jigs) is very much important. Keeping in mind the high cost of production equipment and components, your company will need to maintain these tools so that over the long run it can produce a high volume of products with minimal quality issues.

The necessity of Proper maintenance of polishing fixtures

With high-precision machining equipment, the fiber polishing film for optical fiber polishing machines is built. Over time the fixtures made of steel and aluminum can flex and warp, which will hurt your polishing process and product quality. On the other hand, this wear effect is avoided by polishing fixtures that are made of hardened stainless steel. However, the alloy hardened stainless steel contains more iron that will ultimately result in an increased risk of rusting. This is a major reason why proper maintenance is so critical.

Along with the above, with a plastic latch or clamp the most common fiber optic connectors are locked onto the polishing fixture, which over time can wear if not properly cleaned. Proper locking can be prevented by poor cleaning techniques. This can have a major impact on the polishing machine’s functionality and product quality.

Polishing fixtures are quite expensive and this is a reason why proper maintenance is so important. You can use your fiber polishing liquid for a long time with daily maintenance and with no variation in the quality level of your fiber optic cable assemblies.

To monitor the quality of your polishing fixture, monitoring the end-face geometries of polished ferrules is an excellent way.

For example, Changes in Radius can tell you possible poor latching or a worn clamping mechanism. In case this situation occurs and there is no change in the polishing process

then it is the right time to replace the plastic latch or the polishing fixture.

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