What are optical fiber connectors?

Optical fiber connectors with a straight tip (ST) are a type of connector used in an optical fiber network that uses light rather than electrical signals to transfer data. They are carefully designed to harmonize and protect two optical fiber segments and were the first connectors widely used in the optical network. St-optical fiber connectors use the bayonet-style and lock mechanism and can be used with fiber with one and multimodus. Connectors are used in data centers, network connections with short to medium range and military and security applications.

Using light as a transmission medium allows optical cables to carry much more data than their electric copper counterparts, but also represents some unique problems. Optical fiber connectors must be designed with accuracy as the highest priority, as even a small amount of dust or a slight incorrect alignment between the fiber segments can significantly reduce performance and reliability. ConcreteRY optical fibers, also known as the BAJONETKONEctor of the optical fibers (BFOC), was one of the first widely used connectors designed for fiber optical use and became popular in the 80s and 90s.

There are two different styles of O optical connectors ST: the original ST connector that uses a key design, and a newer ST-II that is loaded in spring. Both designs use the bayonet -style connecting mechanism, which is stated with another connector through action and vomiting. In the center of the connector there is a ferruule, a hard cylindrical tube that contains a real fiber. The Ferrule of the ST -style connector has a diameter of 0.1 inches (2.5 mm) and is most often made of ceramic material that protects the fiber and holds it in place for optimum transmission. The ST style connectors are relatively fast and easy to install and are generally designed to withstand 500 to 1,000 Connect-Disconnect Cycles cycles.

ST VLThe-optic connectors can be with an optical fiber with multiple modes, usually used in a short distance application, or with one optical fiber mode that is used in links spanning several kilometers or more. Like all types of fiber optical connectors, the fiber suffers from a small amount of loss of insertion, loss of light at the connection point and loss of return, the type of signal loss that occurs when part of the optical signal reflects back to the source. The typical amount of loss of insertion for O Important ST connectors is between 0.25 and 0.5 decibels (DB), while the loss of return is generally 20 to 50 dB depending on the quality of the connector.

Typical uses of connectors with optical fibers include telecommunications data centers and networks that cover the area of ​​the building size or campus. They can also carry digital audio and video signals and have been used in cable TV industry (CATV) for long -distance links or with high bandwidth. The US Navy approvedThis type of connector in some of your networks and to be used to be found in advanced safety systems.