What is an optical fibre? Briefly describe how they are used.
A long skinny tube of glass that reflects light that hits the walls from inside right back down the tube, keeping the light pretty much inside and as much as possible undiminished. Light is short wavelength (high frequency) and therefore high bandwidth (carries a lot of information per second) and therefore a light signal is very useful for high bandwidth transmission of signals.
Ah, here is a decent description of how fiber optic cable works and is built:
http://www.arcelect.com/fibercable.htm
An optical fiber is a thin, transparent strand made of high-quality glass or plastic that is used to transmit data or information using pulses of light. It acts as a "light pipe" by guiding light along its length, enabling the efficient transmission of information over long distances.
Here's a brief explanation of how optical fibers work and how they are used:
1. Core: The core is the innermost part of the fiber and is where the light travels. It is usually made of highly transparent glass or plastic with a high refractive index to maximize light transmission.
2. Cladding: The cladding surrounds the core and has a lower refractive index, which helps to keep the light contained within the core. This difference in refractive index causes the light to travel through the fiber by constantly reflecting off the walls of the core.
3. Coating: The coating is an outer protective layer that shields the fiber from external factors like moisture and physical damage.
How they are used:
1. Telecommunications: Optical fibers are extensively used for long-distance communication, such as in telephone networks and internet data transfer. The light pulses, which encode information, are sent through the fiber to transmit voice, video, and data signals with high bandwidth and low loss.
2. Internet and Data Networks: They form the backbone of the internet infrastructure, enabling the transmission of vast amounts of data quickly and reliably across the globe.
3. Medical Applications: Optical fibers are used in various medical procedures, such as endoscopy and laser surgery, for their ability to transmit light into the body with precise control and minimal invasiveness.
4. Sensors: Optical fibers can be woven into sensors that measure physical parameters like temperature, pressure, or strain. These sensors are useful in various industries, including structural monitoring, oil and gas, and environmental sensing.
5. Imaging and Optics: Optical fibers are used in image transmission systems, such as fiber-optic scopes, where the image is captured at one end and transmitted to the viewing device through the fiber.
To summarize, optical fibers are thin strands used for transmitting data through light pulses. They find applications in telecommunications, internet networks, medicine, sensing, and imaging, among others, where they offer high bandwidth, low loss, and other desirable properties for efficient data transmission.