Ocean Optics Optical Fiber Assemblies - Manual

Optical Fiber Assemblies
Installation and Operation Instructions
Overview
Ocean Optics offers an extensive line of standard and premium grade optical fibers and accessories –
including patch cords, bifurcated assemblies, splice bushings, and splitters – for a variety of SR, UV-VIS
and VIS-NIR applications. All optical fibers couple easily via SMA terminations to Ocean Optics
miniature fiber optic spectrometers, light sources, and sampling optics.
Optical fibers offer great flexibility as the core of our spectrometer interface systems. They allow you to
easily connect the optical interface from one application to another to create an almost endless variety of
optical sensing systems.
Ocean Optics optical fibers are silica-core and silica-clad fibers optimized for the SR (190–1100 nm),
UV-VIS (300–1100 nm), or VIS-NIR (450–2200 nm) wavelength ranges. The standard length of a fiber
assembly is two meters, and assemblies are available in diameters ranging from 4
µm to 1500 µm.
We design our premium-grade optical fiber assemblies for maximum optical transmission, long-life, and
encase them in a rugged jacketing that protects the fiber and prolongs its life. The sections that follow
discuss premium-grade optical fiber assemblies in more detail.
Optical Fiber Use and Care Notes
Follow the tips below to optimize the use and lifetime of your Ocean Optics fibers:
• Remove the plastic cover from the SMA 905 Connectors gently. Pulling the connector away from
the fiber when removing the cover will permanently damage the fiber.
• Inspect the fibers periodically to ensure that the fibers are transmitting light. Broken fibers stop
transmitting light. Visually inspect the fibers for light transmission from time to time.
• Avoid coiling the fiber too tightly. While the momentary bend radius of a fiber is typically 200x
the diameter of the fiber, the maximum bend radius of a fiber that you fix in place is 400x the
diameter of the fiber (e.g. 16 cm for a 400
µm fiber). Bending the fiber past this threshold causes
attenuation and can cause permanent damage to the fiber.
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