TUTORIAL 1 -2011/ 2012

EKT 442
1. Give four reasons why optical fiber is replacing copper cables for long-haul communication.
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2. Explain why most optical communication link worldwide uses either 1300nm or 1550nm as the
source wavelength.
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3. Describe the mechanism for the transmission of light within an optical fiber using simple ray theory.
Then with the aid of a suitable diagram, briefly discuss what is meant by the acceptance angle for an
optical fiber.
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4. A multimode step index (SI) fiber has a a core diameter of 50-m large enough to be considered by
ray theory. It also has a core refractive index of 1.50 and a relative refractive index difference of 1%.
If the operating wavelength is 850-nm, estimate;
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a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.

The critical angle at the core-cladding interface.

The numerical aperture for the fiber
The acceptance angle in air for the fiber
The total number of guided modes
New core size to decrease the total number of guide modes obtained above by 50%.
Determine the cut-off wavelength for the fiber to exhibit single mode operation corresponding
to the new core size.

5. Draw a block diagram of a typical digital optical link. List the various optical components suitable to
implement the link.

6. A 40/125 m graded index (GRIN) fibre has a core axis refractive index of 1.5 and a relative
refractive index difference of 1.3 %. It was found that the fibre supports approximately 94 guided
modes for a light emitting diode (LED) with an emission of 1.55 m. Estimate the characteristic
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index profile, for this fibre. Determine the cut-off value of the normalized frequency to support
single-mode transmission in the fibre.

7. Numerical aperture (NA) is an important parameter of an optical fiber. It is related to the coupling
efficiency of the fiber.
i.
Explain in brief what determines the NA of an optical fiber.
ii.
Discuss by using suitable diagram, how the NA is related to the coupling efficiency of the
fiber.

8. An optical link is needed to transmit data between two points separated 10-m apart. You are given a
choice of two different fibers. (a) Glass fiber with numerical aperture (NA) of 0.24 and attenuation of
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5 dB/km and (b) Polymer fibers with NA of 0.48 and attenuation of dB/km. It was found that
BOTH the fibers are suitable and allows same optical power to reach the output. Calculate the value
of . State any assumption(s) made.

9. Explain briefly the meaning of modal dispersion in an optical fiber and how it can be reduced.
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10. An optical ray of wavelength of 620 nm is travelling through the air. It is striking a medium with a
refractive index equal to 1.333 at an angle of 42. Calculate :
a. The angle of refraction. Ans 30.10
b. The velocity of the optical ray in the second medium. Ans 0.225Gm/s

11. Compute the angle of acceptance, the critical angle and the numerical aperture of an optical fiber that

satisfies the minimum core diameter requirements. The fiber core index of refraction is 1.4 and the
cladding index of refraction is 1.35. (Ans NA=0.3708, a=21.70, c=74.64)

12.If the core layer of an optical fiber is made from silica with refractive index 1.45 and if
the refractive index of the cladding layer is 1% less than of the core, calculate (Ans:
1.435, 81.89o, 0.204)

i.
ii.
iii.

cladding layer refractive index,

critical angle and
numerical aperture.

13.Calculate the refractive indices of the core and the cladding material of an optical fiber
whose NA=0.35 and

=0.01 (Ans: 2.48, 2.45.)

14.A manufacture wishes to make a silica core, SI fiber with NA=0.3, V=75 to be used at
850 nm. If n1=1.5, what should be the core size and the cladding index be? (Ans: 33.8

m, 1.47)

15. a) Find the cut off wavelength for a SI fiber to exhibit SM operating when the core refractive index and

radius are 1.46 and 4.5 m respectively with the relative index difference being 0.25%
b) The output form a single mode fiber operating at 1200 nm is approximately a Gaussian beams with

spot size Wo=5 m. Calculate the corresponding divergence angle. (Ans: 1.21 m)


16. Calculate, the number of modes at 850nm and 1.2 m is a GRIN fiber with a parabolic index profile,

p=2, with core radius of 25 m, n1=1.5, n2= 1.49. (Ans: V=22.65, M=128.)

17. What are the advantages of using Single mode fiber over Multi-mode fiber?
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