Fiber Optics

What is optical fiber cable?

Optical fiber is a very thin, flexible and transparent medium in cylindrical form. It consists of three
coaxial regions. The innermost region is called core through which light is traveling. The core region
is surrounded by a region called cladding. The outermost region is called protective layer called

n
n
sheath. Refractive index of the core medium 1 is greater than that of cladding 2 to occur total
internal reflection to avoid signal losses at the core-cladding boundary.

History
In 1840s, Daniel Collodon, a Swiss physicist and Jacques Babinet, a French physicist showed that
light could be guided along jets of water. In 1870, an Irish scientist John Tyndall showed that light
can be made to follow a curved path by using total internal reflection. In 1880 Alexander Graham
Bell used modulated light to send sound signal and he named his device as photophone. He
suggested the importance of guided-light through a medium to avoid interruption. After the invention
of Laser (Ruby Laser) in 1960, researchers again took interest on using light for communication. In
1966, Charles Kao and G. A. Hockham suggested that light could be transmitted through a glass
medium with low attenuation. In 1970 a group of scientist led by Don Keck, Robert Maurer and
Peter Schultz made glass fiber which carry light signal with a loss of 20dB/km. Signal loss was
further reduced to a very low value due to the advancement in the fabrication of optical fiber cable.
Reference:
1. Introduction to fiber optics By John Crisp, Barry Elliott
2. Optoelectronics and fiber optic technology by Ray Tricker

Advantages

Smaller size and light weight

Optical fibers are thin, light and occupy less space compared to other types of cable used for
communication.
Reliability
It can withstand environmental conditions such as pollution, radiation and corrosion. It has a longer
life than copper wire.
Low attenuation
Signal loss is very low. It is suitable for long distance communication with a minimum number of
repeaters.
Security and privacy
There is no cross talk problem because unlike copper, optical fibers do not pick up or radiate
electromagnetic noise. It is more secure and private as it is difficult to steal signal from fiber.
Bandwidth
The frequency of light waves used in optical transmission is very high. Data rate is much higher in
optical fiber than those in copper cables.
Low cost
Cost is low compared to an equivalent wire cable system.

Total Internal Reflection

When light passes from the medium of higher refractive index ( n2 ) to the medium of lower
refractive index ( n1 ), the refracted ray bends away from the normal. Angle of refraction ( 2 )
increases with increase in the angle of incidence ( 1 ). The angle of incidence at which the refracted
ray travels parallel to the interface is called critical angle ( c ). Any light ray entering the interface at
an angle greater than the critical angle is totally reflected back to the same medium. This
phenomenon is known as total internal reflection and is schematically represented in the following
figure.

Applying Snells Law when 1 = c ,

n1 sin c n2 sin 900

n1 sin c n2 1

n2
c sin
n1

sin c

n2
n1

-----(1.1)

Acceptance angle
It is defined as the maximum angle of incidence at the entrance at the air-core interface so that all the
light rays within this angle are propagated through the fiber. A light ray entering at an angle smaller
than the acceptance angle will undergo total internal reflection at the core-cladding boundary and
guided to the output end of the fiber.
Consider a step index fiber with core refractive index, n1 and cladding refractive index, n2 . Let n0 be
the refractive index of the medium in which the fiber is kept. Consider a ray of light incident at an
angle, i on the fiber and refracts at an angle, r as shown in figure.

The light ray while reaching the core-cladding interface undergoes total internal reflection if the
angle of incidence ABC at the boundary is greater than the critical angle c . Applying Snells law
at the air-core interface, we have
n0 sin i n1 sin r

n0 sin i n1 sin 90

Q r 90

n0 sin i n1 cos

n0 sin i n1

1 sin
2

-----(2.1)

i from zero. Angle of incidence at the core-cladding boundary decreases with the increase

c is reached. This angle i is known as acceptance angle,

of i . At a particular angle, the condition
iMax . Any light ray entering the fiber with an angle greater than iMax , failed to satisfy the condition for
Let us increase

total internal reflection and losses its energy by refraction at the core-cladding interface.
When

i iMax , c

Now the equation (2.1) becomes

n0 sin iMax n1 1 sin 2 c

Applying Snells law at core-cladding interface when

n1 sin c n2 sin 900

-----(2.2)

c ,

sin c

n2
n1

-----(2.3)

Substituting (2.3) in (2.2), we get

n 2
n0 sin iMax n1 1 22
n1

n1
n12 n22

2
n1
n1

n0 sin iMax n1

sin iMax

n12 n22 n12 n22

n12 n22
n0

iMax sin

n12 n22

n0

-----(2.4)

If we take n0 1 for air medium, equation (2.3) is simplified as

iMax sin 1

n12 n22

-----(2.5)

Due to the symmetry of the optical fiber, the maximum acceptance angle forms a cone shaped
pattern called acceptance cone as shown in figure. Any light entering at an angle within the
acceptance cone will be guided to the fiber output.

Numerical aperture
It represents the light gathering capacity of an optical fiber and its value increase with the increase in
the value of the acceptance angle. Numerical aperture is given by

Numerical aperture sin iMax n12 n22

Now we can write
If we take
We have

n12 n22 n1 n2 n1 n2

n1 n2 ,

n12 n22 2n1 n1 n2

2n12 n1 n2
n n
n1
2
1

-----(3.1)

2
2

Let us define

n1
Q Multiplying RHS by n1

n1 n2
n1 as relative refractive index difference.

2
2
2
Hence we have n1 n2 2n1

-----(3.2)
-----(3.3)

Now equation (3.1) becomes

Numerical aperture sin iMax n12 n22 n1 2

-----(3.4)

Numerical aperture can be found by knowing refractive indices of both core and cladding.

Classifications of optical fiber

Material: Optical fibers are classified into 3 types based on materials used to manufacture. Optical
fibers are usually made up of silica glass or plastic materials. To vary the refractive index, impurities
such as Germania, Alumina, P2O5 and TiO2 are added.
Glass fiber: It has a glass core and a glass cladding. It has a lowest attenuation of signal. It supports
high bandwidth and used in single mode fiber for long distance communication. It is expensive.
Plastic fiber: Both core and cladding are made up of plastic materials. Plastic fibers are more durable
than glass fibers. They are inexpensive. Attenuation is large in this fiber. They are not suitable for
long distance communication and handling high bandwidth.
Plastic-clad silica fiber (PCS): It has a glass core and plastic cladding to reduce attenuation and loss
lies in between those of a glass fiber and plastic fiber.
Refractive index: Fibers are classified into step index and graded index fibers based on the
variation in refractive index between core and cladding medium. In step index fiber, refractive index

profile shows a sharp step at the core-cladding boundary. In graded index fiber, refractive index of
the core is not uniform and has a highest value at the center and it decreases along the radial
direction up to the core-cladding boundary and no changes in index at the boundary.
Mode: Light signal travels in the form of electromagnetic waves satisfying Maxwells equations.
Only certain directions within the acceptance cone are allowed for the transmission governed by
electromagnetic theory. Each allowed direction of propagation is known as mode. The number of
mode that a fiber can support also depends on the diameter of the core.
For a step index fiber, the number of allowed modes (N) is given by

2 a n12 n22
V2
N
where V
2

-----(4.1)

V is known as V-number, is the wavelength of the light source used and a is the radius of the fiber
core.
An optical fiber that supports only one mode is known as single mode fiber. Multimode fibers allow
more than one mode to propagate and they have much larger size of core compared to a single mode
fiber.
Based on mode and refractive index, optical fibers are broadly classified in to three types.

1. Multimode step index fiber

In this fiber, the size of the core (100-970m) is very large compared to the operating wavelength.
So it supports more than one mode. The refractive index of the core medium is slightly greater than
that of cladding medium.

Since different modes take different path lengths, all the modes of the same pulse reaches the output
of the fiber at different times. This causes broadening (spreading) of pulses and this effect is called
intermodal dispersion. This problem limits the maximum data rate (band width) transmitted over a
fiber for a given length.

Advantage: they are relatively inexpensive and the manufacturing process is easy. It is easy to couple
light into and out of fiber due to the large acceptance angle. Disadvantage: it suffers from dispersion.
It cannot support high band width.

Graded index fiber

It has a core diameter between 50 to 63 m and cladding diameter of 125 m. The refractive index of
the core decreases parabolically from center to the core-cladding boundary as shown in figure.
Continuous change in refractive index causes light rays to bend smoothly and converge repeatedly In
this case, the mode taking the longest path goes through lower index mediums with higher velocity
to maintain approximately the same propagation time of the ray passing along the axis of the core.
This effect helps to reduce the dispersion in multimode fibers.

Single mode step index fiber

In single mode step index fiber, the size of the core medium is significantly narrow to support only a
single mode to propagate down the fiber core. The diameter of the core is about 7-9m.

Advantage: it has the least dispersion (pulse broadening). It handles the highest possible bandwidth.

Single mode step index fiber

Core size is few micrometer
wide to allow a single mode to
propagate.

Multimode step index fiber

Core size varies from 100 to
970 m and supporting more
than one mode.

Multi mode graded index fiber

Core size varies from 50 to 63
m and supporting more than
one mode.

Numerical aperture is small due Numerical aperture is large due Numerical aperture is less than
to very small size of core.
to large size of core.
that of multimode step index
fiber and greater than that of
single mode step index fiber.
It allows only single mode of It allows more than one mode It allows more than one mode
propagation.
to travel.
to travel.
A sharp variation in the A sharp variation in the A gradual decrease in refractive
refractive index profile at the refractive index profile at the index from the center of the
core-cladding interface
core-cladding interface
core and equals to the cladding
refractive index at the corecladding interface
Light travels as straight line Light ray travels in the core The path of the light ray is
along the core axis.
medium in zig-zag manner.
sinusoidal in nature

Dispersion
In optical fiber, the broadening of light pulses as they travel in the fiber core is called dispersion.
Spreading of the pulse causes it to overlap with the neighboring pulses and limits the bandwidth.
There are two types of dispersion called intermodal dispersion and intramodal dispersion.

Intermodal dispersion: It is due to the different time taken by different modes of same frequency
to reach the receiving end of the fiber. Under single mode operation, there is no intermodal
dispersion. It is a common problem in the multimode step index fiber.
Let us find the expression for intermodal dispersion in a multimode step index fiber. The fastest
mode is the ray propagating along the core axis and the slowest mode is the ray which is incident at

the core-cladding boundary at the critical angle. Let n1 and n2 be the refractive index of core and
cladding respectively. The time delay between these two rays gives the measure of intermodal
dispersion in multimode step index fiber. Both rays travel at the same velocity within the core having
constant refractive index.
The time taken by the fastest ray to travel a distance L is given by
tmin

distance
L
nL

1
velocity c n1
c

-----(5.1)

c is the velocity of light in vacuum.

The time taken by the slowest mode is given by

tm ax

L cos
c n1

n1 L
cos c

-----(5.2)

Applying Snells law at the core-cladding boundary, we have

sin c

n2
n1

From figure,

cos cos 90 c sin c

Equation (5.2) becomes

tm ax

n1 L
n2 L
1
cos c cn2

Now the time difference

t tmax tmin

n2
n1

 n1 n2
n12 L n1 L n1 L n1
nL
t

1 1

cn2
c
c n2
c
n2
Multiply RHS by n1 n1

n12 L n1 n2
n12 L
n1 n2
t

n1c n2
n2c
n1

n12 L
n2 c

-----(5.3)

It gives the maximum time delay which is related to the pulse broadening in a multimode step index
fiber.

Intramodal dispersion: Intramodal or chromatic dispersion causes broadening of light pulse

within a single mode. Light with finite spread in wavelength shows dispersion as different
wavelength components travel with different velocity in a medium of constant refractive index. It
occurs in all types of fibers. It has two types. 1) Material dispersion; 2) waveguide dispersion
Material dispersion: Every optical source has a finite spread in wavelength. This spread causes every
frequency components of a single mode to travel with different velocities and the time delay between
different wavelength components at the fiber output results in dispersion. This time delay is given by
L d 2n
t 2
c d

-----(6.1)

From the expression, material dispersion can be minimized by using a nearly monochromatic light source

d 2n
2
with small spectral width d . Another way to reduce dispersion is to choose a wavelength so that d is
very small.

Waveguide dispersion: A greater portion of a single mode having higher wavelength component
coupled in to the cladding region where the refractive index is low. So the signal carried by cladding
travels faster causing dispersion.

Attenuation
Attenuation of signal in a fiber is caused by absorption, scattering and bending losses. In engineering
application, attenuation is represented in terms of decibel/km.

P
1
10 log out
Pin dB/km
Attenuation = L

L is the length of the fiber and Pout and Pin are the output signal power and the input signal power
respectively.

Optical fiber communication

Optical fiber is used mainly in telecommunication and also in local area networking for secure
transmission. A fiber optic communication system is shown in figure. It consists of a transmitter and
a receiver. In the transmitter, the input signal (analog or digital) is encoded by a modulator into a
convenient form. The modulated signal is converted in to light signal using LED or a laser diode.
Light signals are connected to optical fiber cable by a coupler. At the receiving end, signal from the
fiber is connected to the receiver by a coupler. Light signal is converted into electrical signal by light
detector. Photo diode or PIN diode are used as detector. Converted signal is demodulated to separate
the useful information. The demodulated data are stored in memory devices for further processing or
given to suitable output devices. A typical optical fiber communication system is shown in figure.

Light sources for optical fiber communication

Light emitting diode: It is a PN junction diode under forward-biased condition.

It emits
spontaneous radiation in ultraviolet, visible and infrared region. It is an example for
electroluminescence process.
Working principle: Under forward bias, electrons from N type region cross the depletion region and
enter the P type region and become minority carrier. Similarly holes become minority carrier by
entering N type region. It is known as minority carrier injection. At the junction region, there is an
excess of charge carriers

p n

n .
2

above equilibrium value

recombine and emit light with energy equal to the energy gap
recombination.

Here both electrons and holes

Eg h

. It is known as radiative

Construction: It is sandwich of both P and N type materials. It is made in two configurations. In

surface emitting configuration, light emission is perpendicular to the plane of PN junction. In edge
emitting structure, light emission is parallel to the plane of PN junction. Common substrate
materials are GaAs, GaP and InP. PN junction is formed by doping impurities by diffusion, ion
implantation.

PN junction is protected by a plastic encapsulation whose refractive index is such that it allows
maximum light transmission.
Requirement:
o Energy gap should be around 2 eV (visible region).
o Low resistivity under forward bias.
Application
o Light source for optical fiber communication system
o Replacing traditional incandescent lamp for illumination
o Used in display, traffic light, automobile light system
Advantage
o angle of viewing not limited
o fast dynamic response (nanosecond)
o operating temperature (0-70)
o Intensity of light can be controlled
o Longer life time
Disadvantage:
o Output is not a monochromatic light.

LASER diode
It is similar to LED. It is a heavily doped PN junction diode. Below some forward threshold voltage,
It spontaneously emits light as LED. Above threshold voltage, carrier injection increases and
population inversion occurs. Photons generated by spontaneous emission stimulate in-phase
radiative recombination of electron-hole pairs. Thus Lasing action starts. The mirrors on either side
of the active region provide optical feedback to maintain the laser oscillation.

Advantage: It has a faster response compared to LED. The output light is highly monochromatic in
nature.

Photo detectors for optical fiber communication

Photo detectors are used to convert light energy to electrical energy.

PIN photo diode: It is a modified form of photo diode to improve sensitivity and conversion
efficiency. It consists of P type and N type semiconductor separated by a very lightly N doped or
intrinsic (undoped) region as shown in figure. Under reverse biased condition, the size of the
depletion region is increased by the addition of intrinsic region. Due to the non-existence of free
charge carrier in the intrinsic region, it shows high resistance and a large electric field exist across
this region. The incoming light falling on the intrinsic region generate electron-hole pairs and they
are separated immediately by the electric filed present across the intrinsic region and appears as
reverse current in the external circuit.

Advantage: a wide intrinsic region helps to improve the photo-charge carrier conversion efficiency.
It is 10 times faster than PN photo diode. A thick intrinsic layer reduces the capacitance across the
junction.

Responsivity and Quantum efficiency of a Photo detector

The photo current generated in a photo diode depends on the input light power.

I p Plight
I p RPlight

-----(7.1)

R is known as responsivity measured in Amprer/watt. It is given by

R I p Plight

-----(7.2)

Photo current is the number of electrons crossing unit area per unit time and is given by

I P eN e t

-----(7.3)

N e is the number of electrons and e is the electronic charge.

Light power is given by the energy of photons crossing unit area per unit time.
Plight N p EP t N p hc t

-----(7.4)

Substituting (7.3) and (7.4) in (7.2), we get

R I p Plight

eN e t

hc t

eN e t
N p hc t

N e e
N p hc

-----(7.5)

The ratio of number of photo electrons to the number of incident photons is known as quantum efficiency .

Ne
Np

-----(7.6)

Equation (7.4) becomes

e
hc

-----(7.7)

Equation (7.7) gives the connection between responsivity and the quantum efficiency.

Endoscope
It is used to examine the inner portion of a human body. It consists of thin, long bundles of optical fiber
cables. The outer fiber bundle is used to illuminate the region of examination. The reflected light is collected
by the inner fiber bundles and converted into image so that doctors can check the condition of patient at any
later time.

Figure- refer your book