The fiber connector connects the two end faces of the fiber precisely, and most importantly, aligns the axes of the two fibers so that the light energy emitted by the emitted fiber can be coupled to the receiving fiber to the maximum, Its involvement in optical links and the impact on the system to a minimum. So the end face of the Optical Fiber Connector needs to be polished to achieve this optical performance, usually polished to meet the insertion loss, reverse return loss and the end of the geometric shape specifications. Then this article will parse the polished knowledge in the fiber connector.

Optical Fiber Connector Polishing Process

Early "physical contact" type of connector polished when the flat end of the surface processing need to be spherical. It consists of four steps: removing epoxy-based resin, ferrule processing, and coarse grinding and finishing. These steps usually use hard diamond grinding paper for epoxy resin removal and ferrule processing. Now the polishing steps have evolved into the order in which the removal of the epoxy-based resin is followed by the coarse grinding, grinding and grinding cycles, since almost all of the connectors have a radius The The aim is to avoid excessive damage to the spherical surface, while also creating a good mating surface.

Specification for Optical Fiber Connector Polishing

The Optical Fiber Connector's polishing specification is divided into performance and end-face geometry. The parameters of the reverse return loss and the insertion loss are the most intuitive measure of the effect of the polishing end. Insertion loss is the sum of the optical power losses caused by the dislocation of the connector, the end face clearance (air gap), and the smoothness of each connector end. The current insertion loss standard is less than 0.5dB, and less than 0.3dB refers to the specified insertion loss. Reverse reflection refers to the reflected light through the fiber to the original return. The high degree of reverse reflection can be transformed into the propagation of the optical signal, so there is a high error rate in the high data transfer rate system.

Optical Fiber Connector Polishing Material

Now there are a variety of connection-type fiber, one of the most common 2.5mm, 1.25mm and composite cable. The face of the connector must first be air-ground to ensure a proper mating surface. The next step of polishing is dependent on the connector type, reverse return loss, and insertion loss. Ignoring the connector type, most of the polishing sequence begins with a high hardness of the polishing material, Optical Fiber Connector including silicon carbide removal of the epoxy resin and coarse grinding and grinding with diamond grinding paper. These can simultaneously remove edge matter with fiber. The last step is to be similar to silica, which is not too hard to grind the fiber, such as the use of too hard material will lead to excessive grinding. Improperly refined material can cause excessive wear, resulting in fiber splitting during connection of the connector.

Influencing factors

Factors to consider in the grinding process include the choice of abrasive paper, epoxy resin and lubrication type. Grinding paper is the most important factor, because the level and quality of the grinding paper provided by different suppliers is different, so the end user should carefully select the grinding paper. Too hard grinding paper will destroy a 125μm fiber and its spherical radius. Removal of epoxy-based resins is also an important part of polishing. Some types of epoxy-based resins can be easily removed with special abrasive abrasive paper. Optical Fiber Connector The abrasive paper used in this step depends on the size of the epoxy-based resin droplets attached to the end face of the connector and the type of epoxy-based resin. Epoxy resins have different varieties. Some sticky, some sturdy. In short, a clean environment is essential to optimize the polishing effect of the connector.

Polishing is already a mature craft, but it will continue to develop. There is no doubt that the acceptance criteria will be more stringent. The polishing steps will be improved, Optical Fiber Connector and the new connector style will also drive us to make unremitting efforts to transform the polishing method