OPTICAL FIBER CABLE

Fiber is hair-thin material made of glass. Generally, optical fiber has a diameter of 125 micrometers (µm), which is actually the diameter of the cladding, or outer reflecting layer. The core, or inner transmitting cylinder, may have a much smaller diameter (sometimes 10 µm). Light rays beam into the fibre within the core through the process of total internal reflection. This can happen for great distances with little attenuation or reduction in density. The degree of attenuation varies according to the wavelength with little attenuation in intensity.

A fiber-optic cable is composed of very thin strands of glass or plastic known as optical fibers; one cable can have as few as two strands or as many as several hundreds of them. These optical fiber cables carry information in the form of data between two places using optical or light-based technology. Once the light beams travel down the optical fiber cable (OFC), they would emerge at the other end. A photoelectric cell will be required to turn the pulses of light back into electrical information the computer could understand.

While travelling down fiber optic cable, light repeatedly off the walls. The beam of light does not leak out of the edges because it hits the glass at really shallow angles. And then it reflects back again as if the glass was really a mirror. This is called total internal reflection. The other factor that keeps it in the pipe is the cable structure.

Fiber offers many advantages, the prime ones being higher bandwidth and reach. Optical fibre cables (OFC) are now preferred over old copper telecom cables as they provide high-speed broadband services. Optical fibre loses 3% of the signal over 100 meters distance while copper wires lose 94%.

Additionally, optical fibres are more long-lasting as compared to copper wires, which are much fragile. Copper wire can be tapped very easily, while optical fibres do not radiate signals that can be tapped. Optical fibre offers much lower latency (the amount of time required to perform data transmission) compared to copper wires.

The Indian optical fiber cable market is gaining traction. The growth is driven by continued investments being made by the Indian government in developing OFC network infrastructure, in various projects. The Indian market for optical fibre cable (OFC) is projected to grow at a CAGR of 17% through 2023.

There has been increased adoption of Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) connectivity owing to government initiatives such as Digital India, Smart Cities, or Bharatnet. Moreover, the growing number of data centers in India will fuel this growth further.

The Telecom industry is the primary user of optical fiber technology. The increasing need for 24X7 high-speed connectivity and an increase in data traffic due to services such as voice, messaging emails, downloads, and video streaming.

Indian OFC manufacturers have been making great efforts to meet domestic demand for optic fibre cable. For this, they also need support to ensure sustainable development to the overall economy. In several developed countries, initiatives like tax incentives, substantial project subsidies, financial support for R&D have assisted domestic players to proliferate. The Indian manufacturers have the capability and capacity and they also need a similar kind of support from the government.

The optical fibre cable is classified based on 3 factors – the refractive index, materials used, and mode of propagation of light.

The basis on refractive index OFC is of two types:

• Step Index Fibers:

• It comprises a core enclosed by the cladding, which has a single uniform index of refraction.

• Graded Index Fibers:

• The refractive index of the optical fiber decreases as the radial distance from the fiber axis increases.

Based on materials, OFC is of 2 types:

• Plastic Optical Fibers:

• The poly (methyl methacrylate) is used as a core material for the transmission of light.

• Glass Fibers:

• It consists of extremely fine glass fibers.

Based on the mode of propagation of light, OFC is divided into:

• Single-Mode Fibers: Used for long-distance transmission of signals.

• Multimode Fibers: Used for short-distance transmission of signals.

Difference between multimode and single mode fibre optic cable

Based on product type, the market can be divided into single mode fiber and multi-mode fiber. Single mode fiber allows one type of light mode to be propagated at a time. However, multi-mode fiber cable can propagate multiple modes. Multi-mode optical fiber can be used for short-distance runs, while single mode fiber cable can be used for long-distance applications. Hence, single mode fiber segment is expected to grow much faster during the forecast period owing to their long-distance applications and low installation cost as compared to multi-mode fiber.

Single mode fiber’s core diameter (9 µm) is much smaller than multimode fiber (50 µm and 62.5 µm). It’s typical core diameter is 9 µm. This enables the multimode fiber to have a higher “light-gathering” ability and simplify connections. The cladding diameter of single mode and multimode fiber is 125 µm.

• Why use optic fiber cable?

• They have practically unlimited information

• They have high carrying capacity (very broad bandwidth, THz or Tbits/s)

• They have very low transmission losses (<0.2dB/km, cf1dB/km microwave, 10db/km twisted copper pair)

• They do not dissipate heat

• They are immune to cross-talk and electromagnetic interference

The global optical fiber market was valued at $3,477 million in 2017, and is projected to reach $8,153 million by 2025, growing at a CAGR of 11.6% from 2018 to 2025.

It is intended to prepare a Feasibility Report to install an Optical Fiber Cable production facility with an installed capacity of 300000 Fiber Km / Year as a Brown Field Project.