UNIT 6: BASIC FIBER OPTIC COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

Fiber optics is a medium for carrying information from one point to another in the form of light.
Unlike the copper form of transmission, fiber optics is not electrical in nature.

OPTICAL FIBER CABLE

It uses a flexible, transparent fiber made by drawing glass or plastic and has a diameter slightly
thicker than that of a human hair. They are arranged in bundles called optical cables and can be
used to transmit signals over long distances.

An optical fiber is made of 3 concentric layers:

Core: This is the central region of the optical fiber and is made of silica or doped silica. It is the
light transmitting region of the fiber.
Cladding: This is the first layer around the core. It is also made of silica, but not with the same
composition as the core. This creates an optical waveguide which confines light in the core by
total internal reflection at the core-cladding interface.
Coating: The coating is the first non-optical layer around the cladding. The coating typically
consists of one or more layers of polymer that protect the silica structure against physical or
environmental damage.

Then light is trapped in the core through total internal reflection. The other outer parts that are
the strength member and the outer jacket, serve as protectors. Connecting two optical fibers is
done by fusion splicing or mechanical splicing.

A basic fiber optic system consists of a transmitting device that converts an electrical signal into
a light signal, an optical fiber cable that carries the light, and a receiver that accepts the light
signal and converts it back into an electrical signal.

Page 1
OPERATION OF THE SYSTEM
1. Creating the optical signal involves the use of a transmitter, usually from an electrical signal.
2. Relaying the signal along the fiber, ensures that the signal does not become too distorted or
weak.
3. Receiving the optical signal.
4. Converting it into an electrical signal

Transmitters
The most commonly used optical transmitters are semiconductor devices such as light-emitting
diodes (LEDs) and laser diodes. The difference between LEDs and laser diodes is that LEDs
produce incoherent light, while laser diodes produce coherent light.

The Optical Receivers

The main component of an optical receiver is a photodetector (photodiode) which converts the
infrared light signals into the corresponding electrical signals by using photoelectric effect

PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION OF OPTICAL FIBER

Optical fiber works on the principle of total internal reflection.
Total internal reflection is a condition where the angle of incidence in a dense medium exceeds the
critical angle and all the light is reflected back into the dense medium for a ray of light traveling from a
dense medium to a less dense medium.

The angle of incidence in the dense medium which gives the angle of refraction 900 in the less dense
medium is called the critical angle(c)

Page 2
 When the angle of incidence is increased beyond the critical angle, light will not emerge to air but
instead all will be reflected inside the glass.

Conditions for total internal reflection

i. Light must be traveling from a dense medium to a less dense medium
ii. The angle of incidence in the dense medium must exceed the critical angle.
2𝑛
For any two media, using Snell’s law the critical angle is calculated using the expression; sin 𝜃𝑐 = .
𝑛1
where n1 and n2 are respectively the refractive indices of the first and second media.

Activity 1:
1. Calculate the critical angle for the glass in air, taking refractive index of glass as ng =1.50.
2. A beam of light is propagating through diamond, n = 2.42 and strikes a diamond-air interface
at an angle of incidence of 28°.
a) Will part of the beam enter the air or will the beam be totally reflected at the interface?
b) Repeat part (a) assuming that diamond is surrounded by water, n = 1.33

Maximum angle of incidence( acceptance angle)

The maximum angle of incidence in air for which all the light is totally reflected at the core-
cladding is given by:

𝑛 𝑛 √𝑛 𝑛

Where ; n1 = refractive index of core, n2 = refractive index of cladding and na = refractive index of air

Activity 2:
1. An optical fibre consists of an inner material (core) with refractive index nf and an outer
Material (cladding) of lower refractive index nc, as shown below.

Page 3
(a) What is the purpose of cladding?
(b) Show that the maximum acceptance angle √𝑛 𝑛

2. An optical fiber 0.01 cm in diameter has a core index of 1.53 and a cladding index of 1.39. as
shown below

What is the maximum acceptance angle θm for a cone of light rays incident on the fiber face such
that the refracted ray in the core of the fiber is incident on the cladding at the critical angle?

Acceptance Angle and Numerical Aperture

The Numerical Aperture (NA) is a measure of how much light can be collected by an optical system such
as an optical fibre or a microscope lens. The NA is related to the acceptance angle a, which indicates the
size of a cone of light that can be accepted by the fibre.

cladding n2
air core n1
core
n1
a

n2 cladding n2

Both numerical aperture and acceptance angle are linked to the refractive index by the equation;
NA=𝑛 𝑛 √𝑛 𝑛
Where ; n1 = refractive index of core, n2 = refractive index of cladding and na = refractive index of air

Page 4
ATTENUATION (transmission loss)
Attenuation in fiber is the reduction in intensity of the light beam (or signal) as it travels through
the transmission medium.
The loss in signal is given by;
𝑃 𝐼
𝐿𝑜 (𝛽) = 10 log 𝑜𝑢𝑡 , expressed in dB, or 𝐿𝑜 (𝛽) = 10 log 𝑜𝑢𝑡 , 𝐼 is intensity at a point
𝑃𝑛 𝐼𝑛
Attenuation coefficients in fiber optics usually are expressed decibels per kilometer (dB/km)
𝛽 10 𝑃𝑜𝑢𝑡
That is; = OR = log Where; L is the length of the fiber.
𝐿 𝐿 𝑃𝑛
Signal must be distinguishable above the level of noise and this can be measured by the signal-to-noise
𝑔𝑛 𝑙 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟
ratio: signal-to-noise ratio = 10 log ( 𝑛𝑜 𝑒
) also expressed in dB
𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟

Activity 3:
1. The power loss between source and detector in a particular optic fibre of length 1.5 km is 50%.
Calculate the power loss in dB km-1
2. Calculate the length that will result in a power loss of 80% for of an optical fibre with an attenuation
of 2.0 dB km-1
3. A fiber of 100-m length has Pin = 10 μW and Pout = 9 μW. Find the loss in dB/km.
4. A communication system uses 10 km of fiber that has a 2.5dB/km loss characteristic. Find the
output power if the input power is 400 mW. [1.265mW]
5. A 3-km fiber optic system has an input power of 2 mW and a loss characteristic of 2 dB/km.
Determine the output power of the fiber optic system.
6. The cladding of an optic fibre has a refractive index of 1.46 and the core a refractive
index of 1.48. The fibre is 1.80 × 102 m long.
a) Calculate the critical angle between the core and cladding.
b) If 15% loss is experienced with in the fiber transmission calculate the attenuation
coefficient
c) Calculate the speed of light in the core of the fiber
7. The input power to an optic fibre is 10 mW and the signal noise is 1.0 × 10-20 W. The
attenuation loss in the fibre is 2.5 dB km-1.
(a) Calculate the ratio of input power to signal noise in decibels.
(b) The input signal needs to be amplified when its power is attenuated to 1.0 × 10-18W.
Determine the maximum separation of the amplifiers in the cable.
[180, 64km]

MECHANISM OF ATTENUATION
Attenuation can be caused by several factors both extrinsic and intrinsic:
NB. Intrinsic attenuation is due to something inherent to the fiber. Extrinsic attenuation can
be caused by external factors e.g macro or micro bending.
The mechanism of attenuation is as follows;

(a) Light scattering

Attenuation occurs due to light scattering of specific wavelengths

Page 5
Rough and irregular surfaces, even at the molecular level, can cause light rays to be reflected in
random directions as it is illustrated in fig above. This is called diffuse reflection or scattering,
and it is typically characterized by wide variety of reflection angles. Light scattering depends on
the wavelength of the light being scattered. extrinsically is can also be caused by micro bending
in the fiber.

(b) Light absorption

This is a loss mechanism related to the material composition and fiber fabrications. It results in
the dissipation of some transmitted optical power as heat in the waveguide.
Absorption is classified into two basic categories: Intrinsic and extrinsic absorptions.
 Intrinsic absorption: is caused by basic fiber material properties. Intrinsic absorption occurs
when a light particle (photon) interacts with an electron and excites it to a higher energy level.
 Extrinsic absorption is caused by impurities introduced into the fiber material. The metal
impurities such as iron, nickel and chromium are introduced into the fiber

Measures to avoid Attenuation

i. Repeaters: Repeaters convert the signal into an electrical signal, and then use a transmitter
to send the signal again at a higher intensity than was received
ii. Regenerators: This consists of optical fibers with special coating (doping). The doped
portion is pumped with a laser. When the degraded signal comes into the doped coating,
the energy from the laser allows the doped molecules to become lasers themselves. The
doped molecules then emit a new strong light signal with the same characteristics as the
incoming weak signal.
iii. Optical Amplifiers: This amplifies the optical signal directly without having to convert the
signal into the electrical domain. Amplifiers have largely replaced repeaters in new
installations.

TYPES OF OPTICAL FIBERS

1. Monomode (single mode)
2. Multimode

Monomode fibers (single-mode fibers)

Those are Fibers that support a single mode and are called Single-mode fibers. They are used for
most communication links longer than 1 000 m.

Page 6
In the monomode fiber, the core is only about 8 μm in diameter, and only the straight through
transmission path is possible, i.e. one mode.
Advantages
1. Greater bandwidth transmission and the lowest power losses
2. They have a superior transmission quality (absence of modal noise).
3. They offer a substantial upgrade capability
4. They are compatible with the developing integrated optics technology.
5. Offer long distance transmission
6. No modal dispersion
Limitations
1. Small numerical aperture
2. Coupling is more difficult

Multimode fibers
In multimode fiber, light travels through the fiber following different light paths called “modes”
as indicated in [Link]. These fibers support many propagation paths. A multi-mode optical
fiber has a larger core of about 50 μm, allowing less precise, cheaper transmitters and receivers
to connect to it as well as cheaper connectors.

The propagation of light through a multimode optical fiber is shown above.

Limitations of mult-mode
1. Introduces multimode distortion
2. limited bandwidth
3. Short length of the transmission link.
4. Expensive because of its higher dopant content
5. Exhibit higher attenuation.
There are two types of multi-mode optical fibers:
1. Multimode step-index
2. Multimode graded index

Page 7
Step-index multimode type, the core has the relatively large diameter of 50μm and the
refractive index changes suddenly at the cladding. The wide core allows the infrared to travel by
several paths or modes.

Advantages
 Large numerical aperture
 Easy coupling
 Can be used with both lasers and LEDs as sources
 Coupling losses are less than those of the single-mode fiber.
Limitations
 Greater modal dispersion
 Lower data rates
 Short distance transmission
Graded index multimode type, the refractive index of the glass varies continuously from a
higher value at the center of the fiber to a low value at the outside, so making the boundary
between core and the cladding indistinct. Radiation following a longer path, travel faster on
average

Advantages
 Large numerical aperture
 Easy coupling
 Less modal dispersion

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF OPTICAL FIBERS

Advantages
Optical fiber systems have many advantages over metallic-based communication systems. These
advantages include:
1. Capacity: They carry signals with much less energy loss than copper cable and with a
much higher bandwidth for long distances with few repeaters.
2. Size and weight: Optical fiber cables are much lighter and thinner than copper cables
with the same bandwidth. This means that much less space is required in underground
cabling ducts.
Page 8
 3. Security: Optical fibers are much more difficult to tap information when undetected; a
great
4. Interference: They are immune to electromagnetic interference from radio signals, car
ignition systems, lightning etc.
5. Risks: They can be routed safely through explosive or flammable atmospheres, for
example, in the petrochemical industries or munitions sites, without any risk of ignition.
6. Running costs: a copper system consumes far more electrical power than fiber, simply to
carry the signals.
Disadvantages
1. Price: In spite of the fact that the raw material for making optical fibers, sand, is
abundant and cheap, optical fibers are still more expensive per metre than copper.
2. Special skills: Optical fibers cannot be joined together (spliced) as easily as copper cable
and requires additional training of personnel and expensive precision splicing and
measurement equipment.

Page 9