FIBRE OPTIC & COPPER CABLING
The remarkable evolution of
modern fibre optic connector
inspection probes
As fibre optic data rates continue their inexorable rise, connector inspection is taking on
increased importance for those who install and maintain fibre networks, says Maury Wood,
product line manager for cleaning and inspection products at AFL Global.
E
ve r y o n e i s awa re
t h at t h e i nfo r m at i o n
te c h n o l o g y wo r l d
e n c i rc l i n g u s i s
s i m u l ta n e o u s l y
get t i n g b ot h fa s te r a n d d e n s e r.
B i t s of d ata a re f l y i n g t h ro u g h
o pt i c a l n et wo r k l i n k s at rate s
of 100 billion per second and
h i g h e r, a n d t h e fe at u re s i ze s i n
t h e n et wo r k p ro c e s s o r c h i p s at
t h e e n d s o f t h e s e n et wo r k l i n k s
c o nt i n u e to s h r i n k , a s ro u g h l y
a n d fa m o u s l y p re d i cte d b y
G o rd o n M o o re .
Multifibre connectors such
as MPO, MT, and MXC are putting
more and more less-than-human-
hair diameter glass fibres into
tighter spaces. With single
MPO connectors increasingly
utilising 12 fibres at 25Gbps
per fibre, the asset value of
these 400Gbps short reach
Ethernet links is exceedingly
high, making data centre
infrastructure equipment failures
due to connector contamination
completely unacceptable to savvy
management teams. Microscopic
connector end-face dirt and
debris cause light reflections and
attenuation, the enemies of optimal
optical signal transmission.
Thankfully, there now exist
excellent quality and easy-to-use
tools for inspecting and cleaning
fibre end-faces. In particular, the
brief history and evolution of fibre
microscopes shows a compelling
level of innovation, in terms of
optics, electronics and software.
30 | September 2017
To aid our survey and history
of fibre inspection tools, there are
several classification distinctions.
These are:
V iewing method – direct or
indirect path;
I maging method – optical or
electronic;
I mage storage – internal or
external;
F ocus – manual or automatic;
I mage view screen – integrated
or external;
C onnectivity – wired or
wireless;
P ower – battery or tethered; and
C ommand & control – local or
network remote/cloud.
For the most cost-sensitive
applications, as well as
specialised use cases, hand-held
optical microscopes with direct
viewing paths are available. Direct
view fibre microscopes require
infrared safety filters, are focused
manually, use batteries for end
face illumination, and typically
offer 200x magnification levels.
They have largely fallen out of
favour, as they do not allow for the
documentation of end-face surface
conditions or objective standard-
compliant pass/fail criteria, such
as IEC 61300-3-35 or IPC-8497-1.
Direct view microscopes impose a
legal liability risk, due improperly
installed infrared safety filters
leading to end-user eye damage.
Also, these older style optical
microscopes cannot leverage
the enormous economies of