How It's Made, Fiber Optics.
Summary
TLDRThis 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
📡 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.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Fiber Optics
💡Pulses of Light
💡Glass Tubes
💡Hydrofluoric Acid
💡Fusion Splicing
💡Chemical Gases
💡Preform
💡Drawing Tower
💡UV Lamps
💡Acrylic Coating
💡Electromagnetic Interference
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
Ver Más Videos Relacionados
How Does LIGHT Carry Data? - Fiber Optics Explained
1971: FIBRE OPTICS - light's bright future? | Tomorrow's World | Retro Tech | BBC Archive
The Future of Fiber Optics
Laser Fundamentals I | MIT Understanding Lasers and Fiberoptics
Optical fiber cables, how do they work? | ICT #3
Golf Clubs | How It's Made
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)