OFS improves geometry of LaserWave multimode fibers

March 2, 2021

The changes should reduce connector loss and improve link system performance. In particular, the new geometry specifications can provide extra margin in 40-, 100-, and 400-Gbps applications, OFS states.

Stephen Hardy

OFS says it has enhanced certain geometry specifications of its LaserWave multimode fibers, including LaserWave WideBand (OM5), LaserWave FLEX 550 (OM4), and LaserWave FLEX 300 (OM3) fibers. The changes should reduce connector loss and improve link system performance. In particular, the new geometry specifications can provide extra margin in 40-, 100-, and 400-Gbps applications, OFS states.

The geometry changes include:

clad diameter tolerance tightened from 125.0 ± 0.8 μm to 125.0 ± 0.7 μm
core non-circularity improved from ≤5.0% to ≤2.5%
core/clad concentricity tightened from ≤1.0 μm to ≤0.7 μm.

The improvements enable better core-to-core alignment and light-coupling efficiency in connectors and splices, according to OFS. A reduction in insertion loss is the result. For example, the company says that modeling of simulated connections showed an average insertion loss improvement of 0.07 dB per connection compared to industry-standard fiber. The model distribution also showed that 97% of insertion losses would be below 0.25 dB with the new LaserWave fiber and 0.40 dB using standards-compliant fiber. With loss budgets for high-speed multimode fiber networks dropping below 2 dB, such low insertion loss could prove critical, OFS asserts, particularly for links with multiple connections.

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About the Author

Stephen Hardy | Editorial Director and Associate Publisher, Lightwave

Stephen Hardy is editorial director and associate publisher of Lightwave and Broadband Technology Report, part of the Lighting & Technology Group at Endeavor Business Media. Stephen is responsible for establishing and executing editorial strategy across the both brands’ websites, email newsletters, events, and other information products. He has covered the fiber-optics space for more than 20 years, and communications and technology for more than 35 years. During his tenure, Lightwave has received awards from Folio: and the American Society of Business Press Editors (ASBPE) for editorial excellence. Prior to joining Lightwave in 1997, Stephen worked for Telecommunications magazine and the Journal of Electronic Defense.

Stephen has moderated panels at numerous events, including the Optica Executive Forum, ECOC, and SCTE Cable-Tec Expo. He also is program director for the Lightwave Innovation Reviews and the Diamond Technology Reviews.

He has written numerous articles in all aspects of optical communications and fiber-optic networks, including fiber to the home (FTTH), PON, optical components, DWDM, fiber cables, packet optical transport, optical transceivers, lasers, fiber optic testing, and more.

You can connect with Stephen on LinkedIn as well as Twitter.