Fiber Splicing

There are two main methods for splicing fibres together - Fusion Splicing & Mechanical Splicing. Mechanical splicing has - to our knowledge - rarely been used for splicing large fibre counts; instead its main use has been for temporary coonections or emergency repairs. The main reasons for splicing fibres are (1) (2) (3) (4) To To To To connect pre terminated tails to the ends of fibres. Join cables. join two fibres with a low loss joint. repair damages cables.

For the sake of our discussion we shall - for now - discuss only fusion splicing.

How to Splice Fiber Optic Cable

The technology of fiber optics has been around for quite a few years. The technology came into full swing in the early 1970's. Since fiber optics is essential to the telecommunication industry, LAN and various networking projects, knowing how to splice these cables is mandatory. Simply put, fiber optic splicing is no more than the joining of two cables together. Any company using fiber optics will have trained technicians that are knowledgeable in how to correctly splice these intricate cables. Since this can be an expensive repair, knowledge and experience is a must. When dealing with fiber optics splicing, there are two methods of completing the work. A company needs to look at their long-term goals and finances when deciding which technique is best. Which method is chosen will basically be decided on how much money a business wants to spend. Depending on how precise the alignment needs to be, the more money will be spent on an alignment machine. The better the machine, means lower light loss and a better alignment will be achieved.

Instructions Fusion Splicing

fibre Preperation Correct preperation of the fibres to be spliced is essential if a good, low loss connection is to be made. Depending on what cable you have to work with, it is likely made up of most, if not all, the following parts: (1) (2) (3) (4) Core - Typically 8 (SingleMode), 50 or 62.5 (Both MultiMode) microns. Cladding - 125 microns. Primary Coating - 250 microns. Secondary Coating - 900 microns.

Before fusing the fibres together both lengths of fibre needs to be stripped down to the cladding at the ends. Tools are available to do this easily; for example a "Miller Stripper" has a laser drilled hole drilled slightly larger than 125 microns to use for stripping primary coatings. Once the fibres have been stripped it is neccessary to thoroughly - and carefully clean the fibre ends, this is best done with a degreasing solvent such as Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA). This is best done by applying IPA to a lint free tissue and gently pulling the fibre through the tissue twice; holding the tissue sides (in a V shape) with your spare thumb and forefinger. fibre Cleaving

For best results when splicing fibres together it is essential that the ends of the fibres are cut squarely. This is known as cleaving and is best done with a good quality cleaver bought specially for the purpose. Cleavers can be quite expensive - in excess of 1,000 - but should be able to produce a fibre end that is clean and flat with no hackle (rough edges). Fusion Splicing Procedure The fusion splicing procedure differs very little between splicers and generally comprises of the following 9 steps: (1) fibre Preperation Its always best to develop a routine when splicing fibres and one of the first things which you should remember to do is feed a splice protection sleeve (strengthened plastic tube) over one of the fibres. The ends of the fibres should be stripped (as outlined above) and cleaned. Enough of the fibre should be stripped to enable the end (after cleaving) to fit into the fusion splicer moutning. (2) fibre Cleaving The desired low loss splices are hard to achieve without fibres that have been well cleaved leaving square ends. This is even more so with Singlemode fibres. (3) Mounting the fibres The fibres are clamped into place in the fusion splicer. Fusion splicers often use two clamps per fibre, one clamp over the coating, the other over the bare fibre. (4) Coarse Alignment The ends of the fibres are brough close together and alligned between the splicers electrodes. In modern splicers this is done automatically by the splicer with an image of the fibre ends displayed on a screen; older splicers required manual allignment. (5) fibre Cleaning Arc A short discharge from the splicers elctrodes is used to burn off any dust particles or other dirt from the fibre ends. (6) Fine Alignment The ends of the fibres are brought together. There are a number of methods for passive and active alignment, modern splicers do the alignment automatically. (7) Main Fuse At this stage an electric arc (from the splicers electrodes) - which can often be programmed within the splicer for differing fibre cables - is created across the ends of the fibre to melt them. The fibres are pushed together so that they can fuse together. A number of problems can occur during the main fuse which is why the next step is... (8) Inspection & Test Visual inspection of the fuseion point through a microscope or via the splicers own display on modern devices will give a good idea as to the success of the splice. A number of modern splicers will give an estimation of the splice loss, however it must be rememberd this is only an estimation. Prior to removing the fibres from the splicer, the machine may put some strain onto the splice to ensure a good pysical joint has been made. (9) Splice Protection Once the splice has been completed the bare fibres will need protecting, hence the

splice protection sleeve in step (1). The splice protection sleeve - which is just a tube of heat shrink with a stregthening member incorporated - is pulled over the splice and the assembly is placed into the oven which is part of the splicing machine. 1

Understand that fusion splicing is basically two or more optical fibers being permanently joined together by welding using an an electronic arc. The need for a precise cleaver is mandatory if you desire less light loss and reflection problems. Keep in mind that a quality cleaver for this precise work can run anywhere from $1000 to $4000. If a poor spice is made, the fiber ends may not melt together properly and problems can arise.
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Prepare the fiber by stripping the coatings, jackets and tubes, making sure that only bare fiber is left showing. You will want to clean all the fibers of any filling gel. A clean environment is imperative for a good connection.
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Cleave the fiber. A good cleaver is mandatory to obtain a successful splice. When fusing the fibers together, you can either align the fibers manually or automatic, depending on what type of machinery you have. Once you've obtained a proper alignment, an electrical arc is used to melt the fibers together creating a permanent weld of the two fiber ends.
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Protect the fiber with heat shrink tubing, silicone get. This will keep the optical fiber safe from any outside elements it may encounter or future breakage.

Mechanical Splicing
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Understand that the basic difference between mechanical splicing and fusion splicing is you don't require a fusion splicer. It's also considered a quicker method and there is no heat involved.
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Prepare the fiber by stripping all the protective coatings away. You will then want to cleave the fiber as in fusion, but precision is not as critical to the splice. The ends are then mechanically joined together by positioning them inside the mechanical splice unit. In this step a connector or an adhesive cover is used to join the splice together.
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Protect the fiber with heat shrink tubing. As in fusion splicing, this will keep the optical fiber cable safe from the outside elements or breakage.