Tom Jarvela
Tech ed.
Id: 1407
FIBER OPTICS
Fiber optics is a kind of optics dealing with the movement of light through fibers
or thin rods of glass. If light is put at one end of a fiber, it can move through the
fiber with very low loss of intensity, even if the fiber is curved.
The simplest use of optical fibers is the moving of light to places hard to reach,
for example, inside a dentists drill. Also, bunches of several thousand very thin
fibers put together, can be used to view images. Each point of the image made
on one side of the bundle is made at the other end of the bundle, remaking the
image, which can be observed through a magnifying glass. Image transmission
by optical fibers is used a lot in medical instruments for looking inside the human
body and for laser surgery, in copying machines, in computer graphics, and in
many other machines.
Optical fibers are also being used in sensing devices, ranging from
thermometers to gyroscopes. The fibers can be really useful where electrical
effects could make ordinary wiring useless, less accurate, or even hazardous.
Fibers have also been developed to carry high-power laser beams for cutting
and drilling.
One growing use of optical fibers is in communication. Because the informationcarrying capacity of a signal increases with frequency, the use of laser light
makes many advantages. Fiber-optic laser systems are being used in
communications networks. One advantage of optical fiber systems is the long
distances that can be continued before signal repeaters are needed to recharge
signals. These are currently separated by about 62 miles, compared to about 1
mile for electrical lines. New optical fiber amplifiers can extend this distance even
farther.
Local area networks are another growing use for fiber optics. Unlike longdistance communications, these connect many local people to expensive
equipment such as computers and printers. This system widens the use of
equipment and can help new users on to a network. With research of new
electro-optic and integrated-optic components, fiber systems will become faster,
more reliable, and easier to use.
Bibliography: The Microsoft Encarta 96 Encyclopedia CD-rom.