Introduction to Common Optical Fiber Connectors

Optical fiber connector is a detachable, movable, and repeatedly pluggable connecting device used to connect one optical fiber to another, also known as an optical fiber live joint. It can achieve low-loss connection between optical fibers or between optical fibers and cables, effectively reducing the impact of optical fiber connection on signals. An optical fiber connector is mainly composed of four parts: a ferrule, a connector body, an optical cable, and connecting equipment.

Optical fiber connectors need to meet many requirements in terms of characteristics, including the insertion loss of the optical fiber transceiver being less than 0.5dB, return loss greater than 25dB; the tensile strength of the optical fiber connector being greater than 90N; the operating temperature range of the optical fiber transceiver being -40℃~70℃, and the number of plug-in cycles exceeding 1000 times, etc.

According to the different transmission media, optical fiber connectors can be divided into single-mode optical fiber connectors and multimode optical fiber connectors; according to the different connector structures, they can be divided into LC optical fiber connectors, SC optical fiber connectors, FC optical fiber connectors, ST optical fiber connectors, MPO/MTP optical fiber connectors, MT-RJ optical fiber connectors, MU optical fiber connectors, DIN optical fiber connectors, E2000 optical fiber connectors, etc.

Introduction to Common Optical Fiber Connectors

The LC optical fiber connector was developed by Bell Labs. The size of its ferrule and sleeve is 1.25mm, which is half of that of SC/FC optical fiber transceivers. It adopts a jack (RJ) latch fastening method and is generally used on high-density optical fiber distribution frames.

The SC optical fiber connector was developed by NTT Corporation of Japan. Its shell is rectangular, the ferrule size is 2.5mm, and it adopts a plug-in pin latch fastening method, making the insertion method simple and convenient. The FC optical fiber connector was also developed by NTT Corporation of Japan, with a ferrule size of 2.5mm. However, the ferrule of the FC optical fiber connector is relatively short, and its surface uses a metal sleeve with a screw fastening method. The biggest feature of this optical fiber connector is that it is not easy to fall off after installation.

The MPO/MTP optical fiber connector is a special optical fiber connector designed for multi-fiber ribbon cables, with various fiber types such as 4/6/8/12/24 cores. The MPO/MTP optical fiber connector has the characteristics of small size and multiple cores, and is generally used in high-density optical fiber links.

In the use of connectors, cleaning the end face of the connector is a very important link to ensure that the connector maintains a better working state. The common cleaning methods for the end face of optical fiber connectors are contact and non-contact. As an indispensable device in integrated wiring projects, although optical fiber connectors are small, they have made great contributions to the entire network.

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