A Novel Termination and Splicing Approach for the Installation and Maintenance of Optical Fiber

In modern telecommunications and data network infrastructure, optical interconnects are essential to achieve ever increasing data rates. Likewise, high-performance computing (HPC) and data centers are increasingly implementing optical fiber as the preferred interconnect media. Fiber to the premises (FTTP) dramatically increases the connection speeds available to computer users compared with copper interconnect technology, but implementing FTTP on a large scale is costly because it requires installation of new optical-fiber cables over the "last links" from existing optical fiber cables to individual user premises. There is a need for revolutionary fiber termination and splice technology to reduce cost and simplify field installation for massive deployment of optical network and computer interconnect infrastructure. nanoPrecision Products Inc. (nPP) uses a metallic clamshell ferrule design with stamped features manufactured to sub-micron tolerances with nPPs unique manufacturing technology. These features provide retention of the cable jacket and strength member, precise alignment of the fiber cores and eliminate the need for epoxy. Fiber laser welding is used to fasten the two ferrule halves after placement of the fiber. The metal ferrule and elimination of epoxy now permits the development of novel techniques (e.g. laser polishing) to eliminate end face surface defects and increase the durability and repeatability of interconnects. The stamped clamshell ferrule approach will provide a very low-loss mechanical splice for single-fiber and multi-fiber cables, with a simplified means of cable restoration and retention. During Phase I, nPP will (1) experimentally test innovative methods to polish fibers and set fiber protrusion in metallic ferrules and (2) design a stampable splice connector using nPPs clamshell approach. During Phase II, nPP will (3) develop a low-cost factory process to terminate single-fiber and multi-fiber metallic ferrules, (4) test and evaluate cables produced with innovative factory termination processes, (5) demonstrate stamped metallic splice components for single-fiber and multi-fiber cabling, (6) develop field-installable process to join the two halves of stamped metallic splice connector, and (7) test and evaluate fiber-optic cables joined with new splice. The factory termination processes developed in this program will provide extremely low loss field fiber termination and splices and show that optical fiber can be as easy to use as copper wire. Key Words: precision manufacturing, mechanical optical fiber splice, diode laser welding, laser end face polishing, field installation Congressional Summary Massive deployment of a national fiber optic infrastructure requires a domestic manufacturing capability for fiber optic termini and novel fiber optic field installation technologies and related tools for the field installation technician. nPP will domestically manufacture fiber termination ferrules and will investigate innovative laser and materials based solutions to enable field technicians to be trained to install optical fiber as easily as the installation of copper wire.