The Fiber Optic Association is the professional society of fiber optics. It was founded in 1995 by a dozen fiber optic professionals who felt fiber optics needed an organization to promote a higher level of competence among fiber optic personnel through training and certification. Today the FOA offers certification programs through about 100 schools worldwide and over 11,000 students have achieved FOA certification. The FOA also participates in industry standards activities, educational programs (e.g. offering train-the-trainer programs) and participation in industry conferences. The FOA is a non-profit educational organization supported primarily by certification fees from affiliated training schools. Find out more about the FOA at www.thefoa.org.

Bharti Airtel Limited It is commonly known as Airtel, is an Indian telecommunication company that operates in 19 countries and is headed by Sunil Bharti Mittal.It operates a GSM network in all countries, providing 2G or 3G services . Airtel is the fifth largest telecom operator in the world with over 207.8 million subscribers across 19 countries at the end of 2010. It is the largest cellular service provider in India, with over 164.61 million subscribers at the end of 2011 April. 

Bharti Airtel is the first Indian telecom service provider to achieve the Cisco Gold Certification. The company also provides land-line telephone services and broadband Internet access (DSL) in over 96 cities in India. The company has a submarine cable landing station at Chennai.

FIBER OPTICS

What Is Fiber Optics ? Transmitting communications signals over hair thin strands of glass or plastic. Not a "new" technology Used commercially for last 25 years. The first commercial fiber optic installation was in for telephone signals in Chicago, installed in 1976. The first long distance networks were operational in the early 1980s. By 1985, most of todays basic technology was developed and being installed in the fiber optic networks that now handle virtually all long distance telecommunications.

Fiber Optic Advantages Fiber is the least expensive, most reliable method for high speed and long distance communications. Fiber Optics cable have greater bandwidth than metal cables due to which they can carry more data.

Fiber Has More Capacity This single fiber can carry more communications than the giant copper cable. That tiny strand of optical fiber can carry more communications signals than the large copper cable in the background and over much longer distances. The copper cable has about 1000 pairs of conductors. Each pair can only carry about 24 telephone conversations a distance of less than 3 miles. The fiber cable carries more than 32,000 conversations hundreds or even thousands of miles before it needs regeneration. Then each fiber can simultaneously carry over 150 times more by transmitting at different colors (called wavelengths) of light. The cost of transmitting a single phone conversation over fiber optics is only about 1% the cost of transmitting it over copper wire! That’s why fiber is the exclusive medium for long distance communications.

Fiber Types A single mode optical fiber is an optical fiber designed to carry only a single ray of light (mode). These are most often used in high-precision scientific research because the allowance of only one propagation mode of the light makes the light easier to focus properly A multi mode optical fiber is a type of optical fiber mostly used for communication over short distances, such as within a building or on a campus. It has higher "light-gathering" capacity than single-mode optical fiber.

Why Use Fiber Optics? Economics Speed Distance Weight/size Freedom from interference Electrical isolation Security

Fiber Optic Communications Applications include Telephones Internet LANs - local area networks CATV - for video, voice and Internet connections Utilities - management of power grid Security - closed-circuit TV and intrusion sensors Military – everywhere. These are but a few of the applications of fiber optics, as we concentrate on communications. Fiber optics are also used for lighting, signs, sensors and visual inspection (medicine and non-destructive testing).

Fiber Optic Applications Fiber is already used in: > 90% of all long distance telephony > 50% of all local telephony Most CATV networks Most LAN (computer network) backbones Many video surveillance links. About the only place fiber has not become the dominant cable is desktop connections for LANs. Priced to just replace copper, it is more expensive, but using a centralized fiber architecture, fiber allows the removal of electronics from the telecom room and ends up being less expensive!

Fiber Structure Optical fiber is comprised of a light carrying core surrounded by a cladding which traps the light in the core by the principle of total internal reflection. Most optical fibers are made of glass, although some are made of plastic. The core and cladding are usually fused silica glass which is covered by a plastic coating called the buffer or primary buffer coating which protects the glass fiber from physical damage and moisture. There are some all plastic fibers used for specific applications. Glass optical fibers are the most common type used in communication applications.

Fiber Technology By making the core of the fiber of a material with a higher refractive index, we can cause the light in the core to be totally reflected at the boundary of the cladding for all light that strikes at greater than a critical angle determined by the difference in the composition of the materials used in the core and cladding.

Light Used In Fiber Optics Fiber optic systems transmit using infrared light, invisible to the human eye, because it goes further in the optical fiber at those wavelengths. The ultra-pure glass used in making optical fiber has less attenuation (signal loss) at wavelengths (colors) in the infrared, beyond the limits of the sensitivity of the human eye. The fiber is designed to have the highest performance at these wavelengths. The particular wavelengths used, 850, 1300 and 1550 nm, correspond to wavelengths where optical light sources (lasers or LEDs) are easily manufactured. Some advanced fiber optic systems transmit light at several wavelengths at once through a single optical fiber to increase data throughput. We call this method “wavelength division multiplexing.”

Fiber Optic Cable Protects the fibers wherever they are installed. May have 1 to over 1000 fibers. Optical fibers are enclosed in cables for protection against the environment in which they are installed. Cables installed in trays in buildings require less protection than, for example, cables buried underground or placed under water. Cables will include strength members, typically a strong synthetic fiber called aramid fiber or Kevlar for its duPont trade name, which takes the stress of pulling the cable. The thin yellow fibers in the photo are the strength members. The outside of the cable is called the jacket. It is the final protection for the fibers and must withstand extremes of temperatures, moisture and the stress of installation. Some cables even have a layer of thin metal under the jacket to prevent rodents from chewing throught the cable. The colors you see above are color-coding so you can identify individual fibers in the cable.

Fiber Optic Connectors Terminates the fibers. Connects to other fibers or transmission equipment When a fiber needs to be connected to another, it can be spliced permanently by “welding” it at high temperatures or with adhesives, or it can be terminated with a connector that makes it possible to handle the individual fiber without damage. Connectors align two fibers the size of a human hair such that little light is lost. Most connectors use ceramic cylinders about 2.5 mm in diameter with precisely aligned holes in the center that accept the fiber. Most connectors use adhesive to attach the fiber and the end is polished to a smooth finish. Putting connectors on the end of fibers is a job that requires patience, skill and good training. Fiber optic technicians are expected to be able to install connectors properly.

Jobs In Fiber Optics Designing components Manufacturing fiber, lasers, etc. Designing systems Installing networks Training and teaching There are lots of jobs available in fiber optics. Each has unique requirements and requires different educational backgrounds. Designers: Most of those who design components have at least a undergraduate degree. For components like connectors, it would be in mechanical engineering. Optical components like fibers require knowledge of both optics and materials, so many designers will have degrees in physics, chemistry or materials.If you want to develop lasers or photodetectors, you should have a background in solid-state physics. Manufacturing jobs will have differing requirements depending on the technical nature of the job. Some require manual skills while others may require advanced technical education to understand the complicated manufacturing processes. Designers of fiber optic systems are usually electronic engineers. Fiber optic components are used like integrated circuits to develop communications systems. Installers must be skilled in the process of pulling cables, then splicing and terminating them. It requires more manual dexterity than the other jobs, plus a basic understanding of how the systems work.

Fiber Optic Manufacturing Facilities where fiber optic components (fiber, connectors, hardware) are manufactured need many highly educated and skilled workers. They operate machines costing as much as millions of dollars that make the precision components and test the quality of the products.

Fiber Optic Applications Outside Plant vs Premises Installations “Fiber optics” is not all the same. “Outside plant” refers to fiber optics as used outdoors in telephone networks or CATV. “Premises” fiber optics is used in buildings and on campuses. Outside Plant: Telephone companies, CATV and the Internet all use lots of fiber optics, most of which is outside buildings. It hangs from poles, is buried underground, pulled through conduit or is even submerged underwater. Most of it goes relatively long distances, from a few thousand feet to hundreds of miles, over what we call “singlemode” fiber. Premises Cabling: By contrast, premises cabling involves cables installed in buildings for LANs or security systems. It involves short lengths, rarely longer than a few hundred to two thousand feet, of mostly “multimode” fiber. Both these applications are unique in the components they use, the installation methods and the testing procedures, but they share the basic principles we learn in this course.

Fiber Optic Installation - Outside Plant Workers who install telephone and CATV fiber optic networks do much of their work outdoors, braving year-round weather. They operate big machines that dig trenches and lay and/or pull cables. Then they bring the ends of the cables into special trucks or trailers where lengths of cable are spliced together and tested. Outside plant installations require more hardware (and more investment in the tools and test equipment.) Pullers, splicers, OTDRs and even splicing vans are the tools of the trade for OSP contractors.

Fiber Optic Installation -Premises Computer and security networks use lots of fiber which is installed inside buildings. Cables are pulled through conduits or laid in cable trays, then terminated in communications rooms. The installation on the left is in a crowded telecommunications closet of a bank while the right photo was taken in a computer room in the basement of a hundred year old college hall. Premises installers need only a termination kit for attaching connectors and a simple test kit for their installations. Working in crowded telecom closets or communications rooms is the norm.

Teaching Fiber Optics Fiber optics, like any fast-growing technology, needs more trained workers. Some of those workers are trained in schools like yours, both in high schools and colleges, where general courses will prepare you for most any aspect of fiber optics. Some are trained by schools specializing in adult education, often aimed at specific applications, such as installing outside plant telecommunications cables underground, where instructors are usually experienced in the field themselves. All these programs need qualified teachers.