Choosing the Right Fiber for In-Building Applications

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Network owners are increasingly converting their data center and enterprise telecommunication/data communication systems from copper cabling to optical fiber.  Because these applications have shorter overall spans and often use connectors instead of splices, they differ from what is typically seen in long-haul, metropolitan and access deployments. As the use of optical fiber continues to grow […]


Supporting the Nation’s “Most Wired and Connected” State

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The employees of OFS recently reflected on our role in successfully deploying a massive network that makes Maryland the most “wired and connected” state in the nation 2015. In this project, nine Maryland governmental jurisdictions joined forces to form The One Maryland Inter-County Broadband Network (ICBN). ICBN then partnered with the State of Maryland to […]


Taking Multimode Fiber into the Future

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OFS recently showcased technology developments in multimode fiber transmission at OFC 2015. Our live demonstrations showcased future advances in short-reach data center interconnects and “illustrated a paradigm shift in how multimode transceivers are standardized,” according to Systems & Technology Strategy Director Robert Lingle. Looking forward, the most far-reaching impact will come from the trend of […]


Considering Next-Generation Outside Plant Optical Fibers

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Over time, the design of outside plant (OSP) single-mode optical fibers has evolved. Originally, these fibers operated only in the 1310 nm and 1550 nm wavelengths. Then, in the 1990’s, single-mode fibers migrated to full-spectrum performance. Today, end users value fibers that offer improved macrobend performance, backward compatibility and low attenuation. As OSP single-mode fibers continue to change, […]


OFS Proposes Defining New Multimode Optical Fiber

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At the most recent TIA 42.11 Subcommittee meeting, Dave Mazzarese of OFS proposed defining a new, next-generation multimode optical fiber. This new fiber would facilitate the use of low-cost, coarse wavelength division multiplexing (CWDM) equipment on multimode fiber. The proposed fiber would not only provide up to four times the information carrying capacity of current […]


How Optical Fiber is Used in Electrical Power Systems

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The electrical power industry faces numerous challenges on a daily basis. Electromagnetic interference to extremes in temperature; providing safe and reliable electricity to our homes or workplaces, power companies depend on a multitude of systems. In order to help protect their employees from dangerous high voltage while maintaining clear communication, many power companies choose fiber […]


OFS Medical Sterilization

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The use of optical fiber and fiber-optic based sensors in the medical market is constantly growing. Prior to use inside the human body, fibers must be sterilized to ensure they are free of microorganisms and perform well during invasive and noninvasive medical applications such as urology, general surgery, ophthalmology, cardiology, endoscopy, dentistry, and medical sensing. […]


Optical Fiber in Factory Automation

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Factory automation has existed since General Motors implemented their automation department in 1947. Since then, companies around the world have been saving time and money using various control systems to improve quality, accuracy and precision.


Why is the Fiber Twisted?

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Optical fiber shape sensing is a form of distributed sensing that uses scattered signals from optical fibers to ascertain local curvature and twist and thus the shape of a given structure. The twist and bend information is recorded by an interrogator which then reconstructs the fiber shape through a series of geometric formulations. Although shape […]


The “Halo Effect”

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Performance Under Tight Bends It’s not unusual these days for optical fiber to be installed under bends as low as 15 mm in diameter. But even under these demanding conditions, signal quality cannot be sacrificed. Therefore, manufacturers are continuously innovating new methods to improve fiber bend performance.