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Fiber Optics

In addition to use in communications links in telecommunications, optics are gaining increasing significance for industrial applications.

The following aspects are important for telecommunications applications:

• High transmission capacity
• Low cable attenuation
• No crosstalk

However, in industrial applications, other specific properties are required, such as:

• Immunity to interference from electromagnetic influences
• Galvanic isolation between transmitter and receiver
• Small cable dimensions

Fiber optics transmit data via light impulses. After coupling into one end of the fiber, as a result of total internal reflection, the impulses are transmitted at low loss to the other end. This is enabled by the total reflection at the core/cladding interface due to the different values of the optical refractive indices of core and cladding material (n cladding < n core).

Thanks to their low attenuation and large bandwidth, single-mode fibers are mainly used for remote data transmission in telecommunications. However, the gradient index fibers and the step index fibers with their large core diameters are the preferred transfer media in industrial applications as they are economical and easy to use. The transmission distances range from a few tens of meters to a few kilometers.

Corporate Technology Services is accredited for testing fiber-optic components and systems:

• Bit error rate measurement (BERT) – data rates up to 12.5GBit/s, PRBS, variable optical attenuation
• Signal analysis (eye diagram – electrical, optical, mask test, jitter)
• Optical spectrum analysis (attenuation, performance)
• OTDR measurements (high-sensitivity resolution, wavelengths)
• Interface test, optical