Laser-Cleaving Optical Fiber Arrays with Controlled Angles
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for cleaving optical fiber arrays, such as mechanical cleavers and lasers, face challenges like wear, chipping angles, time-consuming polishing, and difficulties in achieving precise angled cuts with minimal insertion loss and desirable performance.
Innovation Solution
A process using a laser-cleaving apparatus to cleave an optical fiber array, followed by mechanical separation, which allows for flexible cleaving locations with no swelling, minimal cleave angle variation, controlled surface roughness, and high process yield.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If mechanical cleavers are used to cleave optical fiber arrays, then the cleaving process is simple and fast, but the cleave angle varies and chipping occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical cleaving system with a laser-based system. The laser beam melts and vaporizes the glass material to create precise cleaved ends at controlled angles, eliminating the mechanical contact that causes angle variation and chipping while maintaining high productivity
2Reliability
If mechanical polishing is used to achieve angled tips, then the insertion loss is minimized, but the process is time consuming and costly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical polishing system with a laser-based melting and vaporization system. The laser creates precise angled tips by selectively removing material through melting and vaporization, achieving the same optical performance without the time-consuming mechanical polishing process
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes phase transitions of glass material - heating the glass to melting point and then to vaporization point. This allows precise material removal and shaping through controlled phase changes, achieving angled tips with minimal insertion loss without mechanical contact
3Productivity
If CO2 lasers are used for angle cleaving, then mass production is enabled, but the heat affected zone is large and fiber swelling occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the laser parameters - using a different wavelength and adjusting pulse duration and power. These parameter modifications allow precise control of the heat input, creating a smaller heat affected zone and preventing fiber swelling while maintaining mass production capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs pulsed laser operation instead of continuous wave. The periodic pulsing allows heat to dissipate between pulses, preventing cumulative heat buildup that causes swelling and large heat affected zones, while maintaining high productivity through rapid pulse sequencing
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The process enables precise angled cleaving of optical fiber arrays with consistent quality, reducing insertion loss and maintaining high performance, while also improving efficiency and reducing costs compared to traditional methods.
Implementation Method 1
a laser beam is applied to form the perforation on the optical fiber array
Implementation Method 2
there are difficulties to reduce the heat affected zone and to minimize swelling of the optical fiber during cleaving
Implementation Method 3
separating the optical fibers of the optical fiber array along the perforation
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to a process by which an optical fiber array is cleaved with a laser-cleaving apparatus. The coating material is stripped or removed from a section of an optical fiber array; a coated or ribbonized section of the optical fiber array is secured in a holder; the holder is aligned inside the laser-cleaving apparatus; the laser cleaves the stripped ends of the fibers in the optical fiber array; the laser-cleaved ends of the optical fibers are then mechanically separated to remove the free ends from the optical fibers in the optical fiber array, leaving a cleaved array of optical fibers. The cleaving process enables the optical fiber array to be cleaved at flexible locations along an optical fiber ribbon or optical fiber cable with no swelling, minimal cleave angle variation across the cores of the optical fibers, a controlled surface roughness of the optical fiber end-faces, and high process yield.