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The largest solutions of pre-terminated ber optics, including multimode and single-mode patch cords, MTP/MPO ber trunks and
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Di erence Between OS1 and OS2 Single Mode Fiber Cable

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As we all know, multimode ber is usually divided into OM1, OM2, OM3 and OM4. Then how about single mode ber? In general,
single mode ber is categorised into OS1 and OS2. OS1 and OS2 are cabled single mode optical bre speci cations. In fact, there
are many di erences between OS1 and OS2 single mode ber. This text will make a comparison between them and then give you a
guide on how to choose the right one for your applications.

OS1 single mode bers are compliant with ITU-T G.652A or ITU-T G.652B standards. Besides, the low-water-peak bers de ned by
ITU-T G.652C and G.652D also come under OS1 single mode bers. That is to say OS1 is compliant with speci cations of ITU-T
G.652. However, OS2 single mode bers are only compliant with ITU-T G.652C or ITU-T G.652D standards, which means OS2 is
explicitly applied to the low-water-peak bers. These low-water-peak bers are usually used for CWDM (Coarse Wavelength
Division Multiplexing) applications.

Besides the standards, the main di erence between OS1 and OS2 single mode
bers is the cable construction. Typically, OS1 cabling is tight-bu ered
construction, which is usually used for indoor applications, such as campus or
data centre. Yet OS2 cabling is loose-tube design. Cable with this construction
is appropriate for outdoor cases like street, underground and burial. For this
reason, OS1 indoor bre has greater loss per kilometre than  OS2 outdoor
bre. In general, the maximum attenuation for OS1 is 1.0 db/km and for OS2 is
0.4db/km. As a result, the maximum transmission distance of OS1 single mode
ber is 2 km but the maximum transmission distance of OS2 single mode ber
can reach 5 km and is up to 10 km. Then for all these reasons, OS1 is much
cheaper than OS2. There is point need to pay attention to is that both OS1 and
OS2 single mode bers over their distance will allow speeds of 1 to 10 gigabit Ethernet. All of these di erences between OS1 and
OS2 discussed above are listed in the table below. You can get a clear understanding from it.

Name OS1 OS2

Standards ITU-T G.652A/B/C/D ITU-T G.652C/D

Construction Tight bu ered Loose tube

Application Indoor Outdoor

Attenuation 1.0db/km 0.4db/km

Distance 2 km 10 km

Price Low High

Learning about the di erences between OS1 and OS2 single mode ber cable, then which cable should you choose? First, if you
want to use for indoor application, OS1 is better for you. However, if used for outdoor application, you should choose OS2. Second,
there is no bene t to be gained in using OS2 cable if under 2 km. OS2 is best for distance over 2 km. Finally, you should note that
OS1 is much cheaper than OS2. In order to save cost, if the OS1 is enough for your application there is no need to use OS2.
Fiberstore o ers OS1 and OS2 single mode ber patch cable as well as all kinds of multimode ber patch cable. It is your optimal
selection.

Related Article: What are OM1, OM2, OM3 and OM4 multimode ber?

This entry was posted in Single Mode Fiber (SMF) and tagged multimode ber patch cable, OS1, OS1 single mode ber, OS2, OS2
single mode ber, Single Mode Fiber Patch Cable, single-mode ber on August 11, 2015 [http://www.cables-
solutions.com/di erence-between-os1-and-os2-single-mode- bre-cable.html] by Cheer Chen.