HIGH EFFICIENCY EXPANDED BEAM FIBER OPTICS CONNECTOR BASED ON NON-IMAGING OPTICS PRINCIPLE

THE MOST COMMON TYPE OF FIBER OPTIC CONNECTORS AVAILABLE USETHE BUTT-COUPLING TECHNIQUE TO ACHIEVE RIBER INTERCONNECTION. THOUGH SIMPLE IN DESIGN, THE INSERTION LOSSES OF SUCH CONNECTORS ARE VERY MUCH AFFECTED BY MISALIGNMENT AND THE GEOMETRICAL INACCURACY OF THE FIBER. MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE SMALL-DIAMETER FIBER END-FACE CAN BE EASILY CONTAMINATED BY PARTICULATES, THUS OBSCURING OPTICAL TRANSMISSION. EXPANDED BEAM CONNECTORS CAN COMPENSATE FOR THIS PROBLEM. HOWEVER, THE CURRENT APPROACHES OF USING ASPHERIC BALL LENSES AND GRADED INDEX LENSES SUFFER FROM FIBER-TO-LENS ALIGNMENT DIFFICULTIES AND POTENTIAL PERFORMANCE DEGRADATION BY RADIATION, RESPECTIVELY. THE NON-IMAGING OPTICS (NIO) DEVICES THIS RESEARCH HAVE THE OPTENTIAL OF ACHIEVING COLLIMATED BEAM COUPLING AT LOW LOSS WHILE ALLOWING NATURAL ALIGHMENT TO THE FIBER AND RESISTANCETO RADIATION. IN ADDITION, THE NIO CONNECTOR, AS A THEORETICALLY IDEAL CONCENTRATOR OF OPTICAL POWER, ALSO ALLOWS HIGH POWER DELIVERY, WHICH IS SOMETIMES REQUIRED FOR LASER COUPLING APPLICATIONS. THIS CONNECTOR CONCEPT IS ADAPTABLE TO A MULTIPORT CONNECTOR DESIGN AND WILL BE OPTIMIZED FOR USE IN LASER ISOTOPE SEPARATION SYSTEMS.