How It's Made, Fiber Optics.

Summary

This script details the intricate process of manufacturing fiber optic cables, essential for modern communication. It begins with large glass tubes that are cleaned, heated, and fused together. A chemical gas mixture is introduced, reacting to form the core of the fiber. The glass tube then collapses into a solid rod, which is thinned into a fiber. The fiber is drawn, coated, and rolled onto a drum, ready for use. Fiber optics are preferred for their efficiency, security, and resistance to interference, showcasing the marvel of light traveling through glass.

Takeaways

• 🌐 The script explains the process of creating fiber optic cables, which are essential for transmitting voice and data through pulses of light.
• 🔬 Fiber optic cables are made from thin strands of glass that transmit light signals over long distances.
• 🏭 The manufacturing process begins with large glass tubes that are treated with hydrofluoric acid to remove oil residues.
• 🔥 The glass tubes are heated and fused together using a hydrogen-oxygen flame, reaching temperatures of about 2000°C.
• 🧪 A chemical gas mixture containing silicon and germanium is introduced, which reacts to form the core of the optical fiber.
• 🔍 The core is formed by heating the glass tube until the soot turns into glass, creating the internal structure of the fiber.
• 🔩 The preform, a large rod, is then thinned out in a drawing tower, where it's heated to 2000°C and stretched into a thin fiber.
• 📏 The fiber's diameter is precisely controlled to be just 5/1000 of an inch to ensure optimal performance.
• 🛡️ The fiber is coated with an acrylic layer using UV lamps to protect it from dust and other contaminants.
• 📦 The final product is either shipped as individual fibers or assembled into cables, offering advantages over copper cables in terms of size, weight, and signal integrity.
• 🔒 Fiber optic cables are resistant to electromagnetic interference and difficult to tap without detection, providing enhanced security for data transmission.

Q & A

What is the primary medium through which voice and data travel in fiber optics?

Voice and data travel through fiber optics via pulses of light.

How are the initial large glass tubes prepared for the fiber optic manufacturing process?

The large glass tubes are first unwrapped, then submerged in a corrosive bath of hydrofluoric acid to remove oil residues.

What happens to the glass tubes when they are heated with a hydrogen-oxygen flame?

When the glass tubes turn white, they are close to reaching their peak temperature, which is around 300°C.

How do the two glass tubes fuse together during the manufacturing process?

The two tubes are fused together by spinning them and heating them with a hydrogen-oxygen flame until they reach the peak temperature, causing them to fuse.

What is the role of the chemical gases injected inside the spinning glass tube during the fiber optic manufacturing?

The chemical gases, containing liquid forms of silicon and germanium, undergo a chemical reaction when heated, leaving a white soot on the inside of the glass tube that forms the core of the optical fiber.

Why is the internal structure of the optical fiber initially in the form of a bulky rod called a preform?

The internal structure of the optical fiber is initially in the form of a preform to allow for the controlled thinning process that turns it into a fine optical fiber.

How is the preform thinned out to create the final optical fiber?

The preform is excised from the glass tube and installed vertically into a drawing tower, where it is heated to 2000°C, causing it to soften and be drawn out into a thin glass fiber.

What is the purpose of the UV lamps in the fiber optic manufacturing process?

The UV lamps are used to bake on an acrylic coating to the fiber, which protects it against dust and other contaminants.

Why are fiber optic cables more efficient than traditional copper cables?

Fiber optic cables are smaller and lighter, carry more information, require fewer repeaters, and are immune to electromagnetic interference, making them more efficient than traditional copper cables.

How does the manufacturing process ensure the fiber is precisely the right diameter?

A series of pulleys measure the tension on the fiber as it's being drawn, and a special monitor ensures the fiber is precisely the right diameter, just 5/1000 of an inch.

What makes fiber optic cables difficult to tap without detection?

Fiber optic cables are hard to tap without being detected due to their nature of transmitting data through light pulses, which can be easily monitored for any unauthorized access.

Outlines

00:00

📡 The Journey of Light in Optical Fibers

This paragraph explains how voice and data are transmitted through fiber optics via pulses of light. It details the process of creating these fibers, starting with large glass tubes that are cleaned in hydrofluoric acid to remove impurities. The tubes are then heated and fused together, and a chemical gas mixture containing silicon and germanium is introduced to form the core of the fiber. The glass tube becomes the fiber's cladding. The process involves heating and collapsing the tube to form a solid rod, which is then thinned into a fiber using a drawing tower. The fiber is monitored for precise diameter and coated with acrylic for protection. The final product is either shipped as individual fibers or assembled into cables. These fiber optic cables are more efficient and secure than traditional copper cables, offering higher data capacity and resistance to electromagnetic interference.

Keywords

💡Fiber Optics

Fiber optics refer to the technology of transmitting information as pulses of light through thin strands of glass or plastic. In the video, fiber optics are central to the theme as they are used to transmit voice and data over long distances. The script describes the process of creating these fibers, highlighting their importance in modern communication infrastructure.

💡Pulses of Light

Pulses of light are brief, intense bursts of light used to carry information in fiber optic cables. The video script explains that voice and data are transmitted via these pulses, which travel through the fiber optic cables. This method is efficient and fast, allowing for high-speed data transmission.

💡Glass Tubes

Glass tubes are the initial form of the material used to make fiber optic cables. The script describes how these tubes are prepared by workers, submerged in a corrosive bath, and then heated to fuse together. This process is crucial as it forms the basis of the fiber optic strand.

💡Hydrofluoric Acid

Hydrofluoric acid is a corrosive substance used in the script to clean the glass tubes by removing oil residues. This step is essential for ensuring the purity of the glass, which affects the quality of the light transmission in the finished fiber optic cables.

💡Fusion Splicing

Fusion splicing is the process of joining two pieces of glass together by heating them until they melt and fuse. In the video, this technique is used to create longer glass tubes, which are a key part of the fiber optic manufacturing process.

💡Chemical Gases

Chemical gases, such as those containing silicon and germanium, are injected into the glass tube during the manufacturing process. These gases react with the heat to form a white soot on the inside of the tube, which eventually becomes the core of the optical fiber. This is a critical step as the core is responsible for guiding the light pulses.

💡Preform

A preform is a large, bulky rod that is formed during the fiber optic manufacturing process. It is created by collapsing the heated glass tube around the fused soot core. The preform is then thinned down to create the final fiber optic strand. The script mentions the preform as an intermediate product in the creation of fiber optics.

💡Drawing Tower

The drawing tower is a device used to pull the preform into a thin fiber. It heats one end of the preform to a high temperature, allowing it to be stretched into a thin strand under the influence of gravity. The script describes this as a key step in shaping the final fiber optic cable.

💡UV Lamps

UV lamps are used in the manufacturing process to apply an acrylic coating to the fiber. This coating protects the delicate glass fiber from dust and other contaminants, ensuring the longevity and reliability of the fiber optic cable. The script mentions this as the final protective step before the fiber is rolled onto a drum.

💡Acrylic Coating

An acrylic coating is a protective layer applied to the fiber optic strand to shield it from environmental factors. The video script describes how UV lamps are used to 'bake on' this coating, which is essential for the cable's durability and performance.

💡Electromagnetic Interference

Electromagnetic interference refers to the disturbance caused by external electromagnetic sources that can disrupt electronic signals. The script highlights that fiber optic cables are immune to such interference, unlike copper cables, making them more reliable for data transmission.

Highlights

Fiber optics transmit voice and data via pulses of light through thin glass fibers.

The process begins with large glass tubes that are submerged in hydrofluoric acid to remove oil residues.

Glass tubes are heated with a hydrogen-oxygen flame to reach peak temperature.

The tubes fuse together when heated to approximately 300°C.

Chemical gases containing silicon and germanium are injected inside the spinning glass tube.

A chemical reaction within the heated tube leaves a white soot on the inside, forming the core of the optical fiber.

The glass tube and the soot are heated until the soot turns into glass, forming the fiber's core.

The glass tube collapses under intense heat to form a solid rod, known as a preform.

The preform is thinned from a bulky rod into a fine fiber using a drawing tower.

The drawing tower heats one end of the preform to 2000°C, allowing it to soften and be drawn out.

Gravity assists in pulling the softened glass down like honey dripping from a spoon.

A series of pulleys and a special monitor ensure the fiber maintains the correct diameter of 5/1000 of an inch.

UV lamps are used to apply an acrylic coating for protection against dust and contaminants.

The finished fiber is rolled onto a drum for shipping or to be incorporated into a cable.

Fiber optic cables are more expensive to produce than traditional copper cables but offer numerous advantages.

Fibers are smaller, lighter, carry more information, and require fewer repeaters compared to copper cables.

Fiber optics are immune to electromagnetic interference and difficult to tap without detection.

The entire process is based on the simple principle of light traveling through glass.

Transcripts

every time you talk on the phone or go

on the internet what you say or type

travels to its destination through fiber

optics voice and data gets transmitted

via pulses of light through hair thin

glass

[Music]

fibers those fibers start out as large

glass tubes first workers unwrap the

tubes

then they submerge them in a corrosive

bath of hydr Floric acid that removes

any oil

residues then they set a tube into each

end of a

[Music]

[Applause]

leg as the tubes spin they're heated

with a hydrogen oxygen

flame when the glass turns white it's

getting close close to hitting Peak

temperature at about

300° the two tubes fuse

together they put this new longer tube

onto another

lathe as the tube spins they inject a

mixture of chemical gases inside while a

traversing burner Heats everything

up the gas mixture contains liquid forms

of silicon an abundant chemical element

found in nature and germanium a chemical

element similar to Tin that's used as a

semiconductor in transistors and other

electronic

devices as the gas is heat they undergo

a chemical reaction that leaves a white

soot on the inside of the glass

tube the heat fuses the soot forming

what will eventually become the core of

the optical fiber the glass tube itself

will form the fiber's covering when

there's enough fuse soot they turn up

the heat until the soot itself turns

into glass then they heat the glass tube

enough to soften it and to soften the

new glass inside the intense heat

eventually makes the tube collapse on

itself to form a solid Rod the internal

structure of the optical fiber has been

achieved but it's in the form of a big

bulky Rod called a preform so the next

step is to thin it out first they excise

the preform from the uncollapsed section

of the glass

[Music]

tube then they install it vertically

into the drawing Tower which will draw

out the final

[Music]

[Music]

[Music]

shape the drawing Tower's oven Heats one

end of the preform to 3600

de

the glass

softens gravity helps pull it down like

honey dripping from a

[Music]

spoon

then using a glob of glass as a weight

they stretch the soft glass and keep

stretching it until they formed a thin

glass

[Music]

fiber a series of pulleys measure the

tension on the fiber as it's being drawn

a special monitor makes sure the fiber

is precisely the right diameter just 5

1000 of an

inch then the fiber passes through UV

lamps that bake on an acrylic coating to

protect against dust and other

contaminants finally the fiber is rolled

onto a

drum from here it's either shipped out

as is or put into a

cable fiber optic cables are expensive

to produce but they're smaller and

lighter than traditional copper cables

they carry more information and need

fewer repeaters to keep the signal from

deteriorating and unlike copper cables

they're immune to electromagnetic

interference they're also hard to tap

without being detected and all this is

made possible by a complicated process

based on a very simple principle light

traveling through

glass