Ofs Fitel, LLC

Matt Corrado

Brian Mangan

Gabriel Puc

David John DiGiovanni

Robert Scott Windeler

Tristan Kremo

The selection of starting materials used in the process of forming an MCR is controlled to specifically define the physical properties of the core tube and/or the capillary tubes in the local vicinity of the core tube. The physical properties are considered to include, but are not limited to, the diameter of a given tube/capillary, its wall thickness, and its geometry (e.g., circular, non-circular). A goal is to select starting materials with physical properties that yield a final hollow core optical fiber with a 'uniform' core region (for the purposes of the present invention, a 'uniform' core region is one where the struts of cladding periodic array surrounding the central core are uniform in length and thickness (with the nodes between the struts thus being uniformly spaced apart), which yields a core wall of essentially uniform thickness and circularity.

Hollow core optical fiber and method of making the same

A technique for fabricating a hollow core optical fiber with a controllable core region (in terms of diameter) is based upon regulating conditions (gas flow, volume, and/or temperature) within the hollow core region during the fiber draw process. The introduction of a gas, or any change in volume or temperature of the hollow core region, allows for the diameter of the hollow core region to self-regulate as a multistructured core rod (MCR) is drawn down into the final hollow core optical fiber structure. This self-regulation provides a core region having a diameter that selected and then stabilized for the duration of the draw process. The inventive process is also useful in controlling the diameter of any selected hollow region of an MCR including, but not limited to, shunts and corner capillaries disposed around the core region.

Growing community of inventors

Flemington, NJ, United States of America

Matt Corrado