History of optical fiber

Point to point fiber optic transmission system is connected via fiber optic cable. May include a fiber optic cable (sometimes called single fiber) or 2 fiber (sometimes called dual-fiber), or even more (48-fiber, fiber 1000)

Humanity has never given up on finding the ideal optical transmission medium, and make unremitting efforts, it was discovered that a highly transparent quartz glass can pass light. This is called the optical glass fiber, referred to as "fiber." People use it to create a medical on the use of the endoscope, for example made of endoscopy, can be observed in about one meter away from the situation in vivo, but it's a great loss attenuation, can only send a short distance is the degree of light loss per kilometer of measured in decibels, until the 1960s, the best glass fiber attenuation loss per kilometer 1000 db is still more than 1000 db of loss per kilometer What does the concept of loss of 10 db per kilometer is the input signal transmission 1 km after only one-tenth, 20 db, says only one per cent, 30 db is the only one-thousandth of ... ... 1000 dB, meaning that only one per cent billion, is whether how communication can not be used, so there were many scientists and inventors that little hope of glass fiber communication, loss of confidence, to give up the study of optical fiber communications.

The invention of lasers and fiber, so that people see the dawn of optical communications. In order to achieve optical fiber communication, but also the performance in laser and optical fiber on a major breakthrough, but a breakthrough in these areas encountered many difficulties, especially in fiber-optic loss of communication can be used to achieve the requirements of loss per kilometer from 1000 db to 20 db reduction seems unlikely that many scientists have lost the realization of optical fiber communication confidence in this case, was born in Shanghai by the British Chinese Kao (KCKao), Ph.D., through the British Standard Telecommunications Laboratories in numerous studies made on the basis of Lightwave made a bold idea, he believes that since the power can be transmitted along a metal wire, the light should be able to along the optical glass fiber transmission .1966 July, Kao's outlook on the optical transmission of great historical significance of the papers, the paper analyzes the main reason for the glass fiber loss of large, boldly predicted that, as long as to lower the glass fiber impurities, it is possible to make fiber loss per kilometer from 1000 db to reduce to 20 dB / km, making it possible for communication. this paper, scientists in many countries are encouraged to strengthen the efforts to achieve low-loss optical fiber of confidence.

The world's first a low-loss silica fiber - 1970, Corning Glass Company's three U.S. researchers Marui Er, Caplong, Keck successfully made the transmission loss is only 20 dB per kilometer fiber. What is the concept of it and use it to compare the degree of transparency of glass, optical power loss through the glass half (equivalent to 3 dB) in length are: ordinary glass of a few centimeters, the most advanced optical glass, only a few meters per thousand through m loss of 20 dB up to 150 m length of fiber, which means that the degree of transparency is already higher than fiber glass than a few hundred times! at the time, made such a low loss optical fiber can be said to amazing move, which marks the optical fiber for communications with the realistic possibility.