Fiber optic splitter, also often called fiber coupler or fiber splitter, one of fiber optic assemblies, is a passive optical device widely used in fiber optic communication systems. Its main function is to evenly distribute the input optical signal energy to multiple output ports, or merge the optical signals of multiple input ports into one output port, thereby realizing the distribution or combination of optical signals. According to its working principle and application scenario, fiber optic splitters can be divided into different types, but the most common ones are based on planar light waveguide (PLC) technology and fused biconical taper (FBT) technology.
FBT fiber optic splitter: By fusing two or more optical fibers side by side and slowly stretching them during heating to form a tapered structure, the power distribution of optical signals is realized. This technology relies on the change of refractive index during fiber fusion to control the propagation path of light. Different stretching degrees will obtain different proportions of optical splitting effects. FBT technology has relatively low cost and is suitable for small batch and multi-customization production, but its performance is greatly affected by environmental factors, and the splitting uniformity is not as good as PLC technology.
PLC fiber splitter: Using optical waveguide technology, a series of tiny optical waveguide channels are made on a silicon substrate through semiconductor processes such as photolithography and etching. These channels can accurately control the propagation direction and energy distribution of light according to a specific design layout. PLC splitters have high stability, excellent uniformity and a wide operating wavelength range, suitable for large-scale production, and are widely used in occasions requiring high performance and stability. However, its manufacturing process is complex and the cost is relatively high.
Fiber optical splitters play a vital role in modern communication networks, especially in fiber-to-the-home (FTTH), Passive Optical Network (PON), fiber sensing, and data center interconnection scenarios:
Fiber-to-the-home (FTTH): In FTTH deployment, they are used to distribute the trunk fiber signal from the central office to multiple home users. Each user receives data and transmits uplink signals through his own branch fiber, greatly improving the network's coverage efficiency and bandwidth utilization.
PON network: In the passive optical network architecture, it is one of the key components of the GPON or EPON system. It enables a single optical line terminal (OLT) to serve multiple optical network units (ONU) through one optical fiber, reducing the cost of network deployment and the difficulty of maintenance.
Fiber sensing: They are also used in distributed fiber sensing systems, such as temperature monitoring, stress detection, etc., by distributing or combining optical signals in the sensing fiber to achieve real-time monitoring of environmental parameters over long distances and over a wide range.
Data center interconnection: Inside large data centers, they help optimize network architecture and improve data transmission efficiency, especially in scenarios that require high-density fiber connections and flexible bandwidth allocation.
The main indicators for evaluating the performance of fiber splitters include insertion loss, splitting ratio, return loss, operating wavelength range, polarization-dependent loss, and temperature stability. Among them, insertion loss refers to the total loss of the input optical signal after passing through the splitter, splitting ratio refers to the ratio of optical power between each output port, and return loss measures the degree to which the undistributed optical signal is reflected back to the input end.
In summary, as the basic building block in the optical fiber communication system, the advancement of fiber optic cable splitter and the expansion of their applications are of great significance to promoting the development of the information society, improving network transmission efficiency and promoting the application of various emerging technologies. It is not only a simple component in the optical fiber communication network, but also a smart bridge connecting the digital world.
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