Fiber optics is a major building block in the telecommunication infrastructure.

Its high bandwidth capabilities and low attenuation characteristics make it ideal for gigabit transmission and beyond. In this tutorial, you will learn the building blocks that make up a fiber optic communication system. So lets get started!

>> What Are the Benefits of Fiber Optics?

Fiber optics have many advantages over copper cable based (Coaxial, Twisted Pair) communication systems. We are listing the most important ones here.

Long-distance signal transmission. The low loss and superior signal quality found in optical systems allow much longer spans without amplifier than copper cable based systems. Advanced fiber optic system can go over 100 kilometers with no active or passive processing. Immunity to electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio frequency interference (RFI). Since optical fiber has no metallic components, it can be installed in areas with electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio frequency interference (RFI). Such as utility lines, power-carrying lines, and railroad tracks. High bandwidth and light weight. It is commonplace to install new cabling within existing duct systems or conduit. The relatively small diameter and light weight of optical cable make such installations easy and practical, saving valuable conduit space in these environments.

>> 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. 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.

The following figure shows the schematic of a basic fiber optic system.

>> Fiber Optic Communication System Wavelength Windows

Optical fiber transmission uses wavelengths that are in the near-infrared portion of the spectrum, just above the visible, and thus naked eyes cannot see. Typical optical transmission wavelengths are 850 nm, 1310 nm, and 1550 nm. Lasers are usually used for 1310nm or 1550nm single mode systems. Multimode LEDs are used for 850nm or 1300nm multimode systems. These wavelengths were chosen because optical fibers have low attenuation at these wavelengths and LEDs and lasers are readily available at these wavelengths.

>> How to Calculate Fiber Optic Signal Loss

Fiber optic loss is typically expressed in terms of decibels (dB) and can be calculated using the following equation.

Oftentimes, loss in optical fiber is also expressed in terms of decibels per kilometer (dB/km). Take a look at the following sample calculation. A fiber of 100m length has Pin = 10 W and Pout = 9 W. Find the loss in dB/km.

>> Optical Fiber Types

1. Step Index Multimode Fibers

Step-index multimode fiber has an index of refraction profile that steps from high to low as measured from core to cladding. Step index multimode fibers have relatively large core diameter and numerical aperture (NA). The core/cladding diameter of a typical multimode fiber used for telecommunication is 62.5/125 m. The term multimode refers to the fact that m ultiple modes or paths through the fiber are possible. Step index multimode fiber is used in applications that require high bandwidth (< 1 GHz) over relatively short distances (< 3 km) such as a LAN or a campus network backbone.

2. Graded-Index Multimode Fibers

Graded-index fiber is a compromise between the large core diameter and N.A. of multimode fiber and the higher bandwidth of single-mode fiber. With creation of a core whose index of refraction decreases parabolically from the core center toward the cladding, light traveling through the center of the fiber experiences a higher index than light traveling in the higher modes. This means that the higher-order modes travel faster than the lower-order modes, which allows them to catch up to the lower-order modes, thus decreasing the amount of modal dispersion, which increases the bandwidth of the fiber.

3. Step-Index Single Mode Fibers Single-mode step-index fiber allows for only one path, or mode, for light to travel within the fiber. In a multimode step-index fiber, the number of modes Mn propagating can be approximated by the following equation.

Here V is known as the normalized frequency, or the V-number, which relates the fiber size, the refractive index, and the wavelength. The V-number is given by the following equation

In this equation, a is the fiber core radius, is the operating wavelength, n 1 is the core index, and is the relative refractive index difference between core and cladding. It can be shown that by reducing the diameter of the fiber to a point at which the Vnumber is less than 2.405, higher-order modes are effectively extinguished and singlemode operation is possible.

The core diameter for a typical single-mode fiber is between 5 m and 10 m with a 125m cladding. Single-mode fibers are used in applications in which low signal loss and high data rates are required, such as in long spans where repeater/amplifier spacing must be maximized. Because single-mode fiber allows only one mode or ray to propagate (the lowest-order mode), it does not suffer from modal dispersion like multimode fiber and therefore can be used for higher bandwidth applications. However, even though single-mode fiber is not affected by modal dispersion, at higher data rates chromatic dispersion can limit the performance. This problem can be overcome by several methods. One can transmit at a wavelength in which glass has a fairly constant index of refraction (~1300 nm), use an optical source such as a distributed-feedback laser (DFB laser) that has a very narrow output spectrum, use special dispersion-compensating fiber, or use a combination of all these methods. single-mode fiber is used in high-bandwidth, long-distance applications such as longdistance telephone trunk lines, cable TV head-ends, and high-speed local and wide area network (LAN and WAN) backbones.

>> Optical Fiber Dispersion

1. What is Fiber Dispersion? Dispersion, expressed in terms of the symbol t, is defined as pulse spreading in an optical fiber. As a pulse of light propagates through a fiber, elements such as numerical aperture, core diameter, refractive index profile, wavelength, and laser line width cause the pulse to broaden. This poses a limitation on the overall bandwidth of the fiber as demonstrated in the following figure.

Dispersion t can be determined from the following equation. Dispersion is measured in time, typically nanoseconds or picoseconds.

Total dispersion is a function of fiber length. The longer the fiber, the more the dispersion. The following equation gives the total dispersion per unit length.

The overall effect of dispersion on the performance of a fiber optic system is known as inter-symbol interference (ISI) as shown in the following figure.

Inter-symbol interference occurs when the pulse spreading caused by dispersion causes the output pulses of a system to overlap, rendering them undetectable. If an input pulse is caused to spread such that the rate of change of the input exceeds the dispersion limit of the fiber, the output data will become indiscernible. 2. Fiber Optic Dispersion Types Dispersion is generally divided into two categories: modal dispersion and chromatic dispersion. a) Modal Dispersion Model dispersion is defined as pulse spreading caused by the time delay between lowerorder modes (modes or rays propagating straight through the fiber close to the optical axis) and higher-order modes (modes propagating at steeper angles). This is shown in the following figure. Modal dispersion is problematic in multimode fiber, causing bandwidth limitation, but it is not a problem in single-mode fiber where only one mode is allowed to propagate.

b) Chromatic Dispersion Chromatic dispersion is pulse spreading due to the fact that different wavelengths of light propagate at slightly different velocities through the fiber. All light sources, whether laser or LED, have finite line widths, which means they emit more than one wavelength. Because the index of refraction of glass fiber is a wavelength-dependent quantity, different wavelengths propagate at different velocities. Chromatic dispersion is typically expressed in units of nanoseconds or picoseconds per (km-nm). Chromatic dispersion consists of two parts: material dispersion and waveguide dispersion. Material dispersion is due to the wavelength dependency on the index of refraction of glass. Waveguide dispersion is due to the physical structure of the waveguide.

In a simple step-indexprofile fiber, waveguide dispersion is not a major factor, but in fibers with more complex index profiles, waveguide dispersion can be more significant. Material dispersion and waveguide dispersion can have opposite signs depending on the transmission wavelength. In the case of a step-index single-mode fiber, these two effectively cancel each other at 1310 nm, yielding zerodispersion. This makes very highbandwidth communication possible at this wavelength. However, the drawback is that, even though dispersion is minimized at 1310 nm, attenuation is not. Glass fiber exhibits minimum attenuation at 1550 nm. Coupling that with the fact that erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFA) operate in the 1550-nm range makes it obvious that, if the zero-dispersion property of 1310 nm could be shifted to coincide with the 1550-nm transmission window, high-bandwidth long-distance communication would be possible. With this in mind, zero-dispersion-shifted fiber was developed. When considering the total dispersion from different causes, we can approximate the total dispersion by ttot

where tn represents the dispersion due to the various components that make up the system. The transmission capacity of fiber is typically expressed in terms of bandwidth distance. For example, the bandwidth distance product for a typical 62.5/125-m (core/cladding diameter) multimode fiber operating at 1310 nm might be expressed as 600 MHzkm. The approximate bandwidth of a fiber can be related to the total dispersion by the following relationship

c) Dispersion Shifted Fiber By altering the design of the waveguide, we can increase the magnitude of the waveguide dispersion o as to shift the zero-dispersion wavelength to 1550 nm. This type of fiber has an index profile that resembles a W and hence is sometimes referred to as W-profile fiber as shown below.

Although this type of fiber works well at the zero-dispersion wavelength, in systems in which multiple wavelengths are transmitted, such as in wavelength-division multiplexing, signals transmitted at different wavelengths around 1550 nm can interfere with one another, resulting in a phenomenon called four-wave mixing, which degrades system performance.

However, if the waveguide structure of the fiber is modified so that the waveguide dispersion is further increased, the zero-dispersion point can be pushed past 1600 nm (outside the EDFA operating window). This means that the total chromatic dispersion can still be substantially lowered in the 1550-nm range without having to worry about performance problems. This type of fiber is known as nonzero-dispersion-shifted fiber. The following figure compares the material chromatic and wavelength dispersions for single-mode fiber and dispersion-shifted fiber.

Basic Configuration of Optical Fiber Communication

Basic configuration of optical fiber communication (Optical Fiber Communication System Part 3) An optical fiber link consists of optical source, optical fiber transmission medium, basic block diagram of a simple point-to- point optical fiber link is shown in figure: I. Transmitter: An optical transmitter consists of a source which could be either a laser or LED, a means for efficiently coupling the output power into the transmission fiber, a modulation circuit and in the case of a laser, a level control circuit. In addition, for some applications spectral control is also necessary. the photo detector and its

associated receiver and connectors used to join individual fiber cables to each other and to the source and detector. A

Basic block diagram of optical fiber communication II. Receiver: The optical receiver has three functions, namely, (a) the conversion from optical to electrical signal, (b) amplification and (c) estimation of the message originally transmitted. However. all practical optical fiber optic communication systems use in coherent (direct) detection. Thus, in optica l fiber communication only optical power variation is detected. The first function of the receiver, namely, the conversion from optical to electrical signal is achieved by the use of photo-detectors together with their associated electronic circuit. The amplifiers must be such as to introduce minimum amount of noise and distortion. The receiver is highly sensitive low noise receiver.

Fiber Optic Transmitters and Receivers (Transceivers)

Fiber Optic Datalink Fiber optic transmission systems (datalinks) all work similar to the diagram

shown above. They consist of a transmitter on one end of a fiber and a receiver on the other end. Most systems operate by transmitting in one direction on one fiber and in the reverse direction on another fiber for full duplex operation.

Fiber Optic Transceiver

Most systems use a "transceiver" which includes both transmission and receiver in a single module. The transmitter takes an electrical input and converts it to an optical output from a laser diode or LED. The light from the transmitter is coupled into the fiber with a connector and is transmitted through the fiber optic cable plant. The light from the end of the fiber is coupled to a receiver where a detector converts the light into an electrical signal which is then conditioned properly for use by the receiving equipment.

Sources for Fiber Optic Transmitters The sources used for fiber optic transmitters need to meet several criteria: it has to be at the correct wavelength, be able to be modulated fast enough to transmit data and be efficiently coupled into fiber. Four types of sources are commonly used, LEDs, fabry-perot (FP) lasers, distributed feedback (DFB) lasers and vertical cavity surfaceemitting lasers (VCSELs). All convert electrical signals into optical signals, but are otherwise quite different devices. All three are tiny semiconductor devices (chips). LEDs and VCSELs are fabricated on semiconductor wafers such that they emit light from the surface of the chip, while f-p lasers emit from the side of the chip from a laser cavity created in the middle of the chip.

LEDs have much lower power outputs than lasers and their larger, diverging light output pattern makes them harder to couple into fibers, limiting them to use with multimode fibers. Laser have smaller tighter light outputs and are easily coupled to singlemode fibers, making them ideal for long distance high speed links. LEDs have much less bandwidth than lasers and are limited to systems operating up to about 250 MHz or around 200 Mb/s. Lasers have very high bandwidth capability, most being useful to well over 10 GHz or 10 Gb/s. Because of their fabrication methods, LEDs and VCSELs are cheap to make. Lasers are more expensive because creating the laser cavity inside the device is more difficult, the chip must be separated from the semiconductor wafer and each end coated before the laser can even be tested to see if its good. Typical Fiber Optic Source Specifications
Device Type LED Fabry-Perot Laser DFB Laser VCSEL Wavelength (nm) 850, 1300 850, 1310 (12801330) 1550 (1480-1650) 1550 (14801650) 850 Power into Fiber (dBm) -30 to -10 0 to +10 Bandwidth <250 MHz Fiber Types MM

>10 GHz

MM, SM

0 to +25 -10 to 0

>10 GHz >10 GHz

SM MM

LEDs have a limited bandwidth while all types of lasers are very fast. Another big difference between LEDs and both types of lasers is the spectral output. LEDs have a very broad spectral output which causes them to suffer chromatic dispersion in fiber, while lasers have a narrow spectral output that suffers very little chromatic dispersion. DFB lasers, which are used in long distance and DWDM systems, have the narrowest spectral width which minimizes chromatic dispersion on the longest links. DFB lasers are also highly linear (that is the light output directly follows the electrical input) so they can be used as sources in AM CATV systems.

The choice of these devices is determined mainly by speed and fiber compatibility issues. As many premises systems using multimode fiber have exceeded bit rates of 1 Gb/s, lasers (mostly VCSELs) have replaced LEDs. The output of the LED is very broad but lasers are very focused, and the sources will have very different modal fill in the fibers. The restricted launch of the VCSEL (or any laser) makes the effective bandwidth of the fiber higher, but laser-optimized fiber, usually OM3, is the choice for lasers.

The electronics for a transmitter are simple. They convert an incoming pulse (voltage) into a precise current pulse to drive the source. Lasers generally are biased with a low DC current and modulated above that bias current to maximize speed. Detectors for Fiber Optic Receivers Receivers use semiconductor detectors (photodiodes or photodetectors) to convert optical signals to electrical signals. Silicon photodiodes are used for short wavelength links (650 for POF and 850 for glass MM fiber). Long wavelength systems usually use InGaAs (indium gallium arsenide) detectors as they have lower noise than germanium which allows for more sensitive receivers.

Very high speed systems sometimes use avalanche photodiodes (APDs) that are biased at high voltage to create gain in the photodiode. These devices are more expensive and more complicated to use but offer significant gains in performance. Packaging Transcivers are usually packaged in industry standard packages like these XFP modules for gigabit datalinks(L) and Xenpak (R). The XFP modules connect to a duplex LC connector on the optical end and a standard electrical interface on the other end. The Xenpak are for 10 gigabit networks but use SC duplex connection. Both are similar to media converters but are powered from the equipment they are built into.

Performance Just as with copper wire or radio transmission, the performance of the fiber optic data link can be determined by how well the reconverted electrical signal out of the receiver matches the input to the transmitter. The discussion of performance on datalinks applies directly to transceivers which supply the optical to electrical conversion. Every manufacturer of transcivers specifies their product for receiver sensitivity (perhaps a minimum power required) and minimum power coupled into the fiber from the source. Those specifications will end up being the datalink specifications on the final product used in the field.

This project was proposed. Is basic principles of signal transmission through a fiber obtic in a simple and saves. A simple communication systems to home use. Video Door Phone Intercom is going to happen in the future. or Meetings monitor route. via the computer network with Electromagnetic wave Or transmitting visual information, audio and more. By is connected through a Conductive metal wire or electromagnetic waves. Its complicated. And not very effective. We so find another intermediary, so found that the light can lead them to the same destination. Without distortion at all. The working principle. In figure 1 The circuit is divided as 2 main section are transmitter and receiver. - The receiver consists of 3 parts are : 1. the signal receiver 2. the amplifier and 3. the converter. - The transmitter, A MIC1 act as the sound receiver once we talk to a microphone, the voice is converted to the electrical signal. Next wire connected to a capacitor C1 smooth a fluctuating signal. To bias a transistor Q1, but the signal get from the output of Q1(2SC1815) still not heavy enough so must increase up by the Q2(2SC1815). And then the signal is sent to the MFOE76 photo diode. To convert electrical signals into optical signals. It is a red light that we can see. On the receiver section, the MFOD73 photo transistor act get the optical signals from the transmitter by through the fiber optic wire, then the optical signals is converted to electrical to bias with the Q3(2SC1815). But the signalHowever, the signals have very low the voltage. Not enough to drive the speakers. must using IC LM386N amplifier to increase up the signal strength. The VR1 is adjusted with the strength of the signal.

Figure 1 Diy fiber optic intercom circuits How to assemble circuit Due to both the transmitter and receiver circuits are separated from each other. We need to

create two unit are one transmitter and one receiver unit. Each device will use battery 9 volts is the applied a voltage to the circuit. First, make PCB is 2 sheets. Characteristics copper pattern shown in Figure 2. When it comes to printed circuit boards. The soldering equipment. According to Figure 3. Be careful leg devices, transistors, ICs, capacitors, must enter it correctly. Then solder the wires to the external device attached to the box. on the prototype use the versatile box. Which can be mounted PCB to fitted.

Figure 2 Diy fiber optic intercom PCB.

Figure 3 DIY fiber optic intercom PCB Layout.

Applications. We can use it as a general intercom. However, because this project is a one-way intercom. Can send audio signal only. And thats important. Using a fiber optic transmission. Should be careful not to make the twisted fibers within it may be broken.And should not be Using too long. Because it is implemented in a simple way. No repeater station.In an experiment at a distance of 14 feet the sound quality is also good. So it may be Using fiber optic cable was longer. Applications may be used as a tool for communication between one room to another room that was around the same time.