Article
Article
Optical fibers
Article By:
Nagel, Suzanne R. Manufacturing Process Research and Development Division, Engineering Research Center, Princeton, New Jersey.
Brown, Thomas G. The Institute of Optics, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York.
Last reviewed:January 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.472000
Transparent strands of glass, plastic, or other flexible material used for light delivery. The light delivery can be for the purpose of signal (data) transmission, light amplification, image transmission, or energy transmission. The light can be confined by total internal reflection, by mirrorlike reflection from an internal coated surface, or by a suitably designed set of interior air holes formed parallel to the axis of the fiber. Optical fibers are, in their most common form, a type of dielectric guide for electromagnetic waves (waveguide). In certain forms, fibers are also termed lightguides. See also: Reflection of electromagnetic radiation
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