A Study of Single Mode Optical Fiber Test System

Abstract

This thesis is based on a study of single mode optical fiber test systems in the optical fiber manufacturing process. The study focussed on the operating procedure used in the testing of four important single mode fiber parameters. These parameters are the fiber attenuation, cutoff wavelength, mode field diameter and geometry. The automation of the fiber test process was also investigated. An integration of the existing test setup, which currently consists of three seperate test stations, could provide an opportunity to streamline the test procedure and, consequently, improve the test efficiency and quality. The design and testing of an automatic fiber alignment unit to be used with the fiber test system is also presented. This system could be used to automate the test fiber end alignment with the light source and detector in the test procedure.