The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 18, 1999
Filed:
May. 23, 1997
Maureen Gillen Chan, New Providence, NJ (US);
Daryl Inniss, Hillsborough, NJ (US);
Howard Edan Katz, Summit, NJ (US);
Valerie Jeanne Kuck, Upper Montclair, NJ (US);
Marcia Lea Schilling, Basking Ridge, NJ (US);
Lucent Technologies Inc., Murray Hill, NJ (US);
Abstract
An optical fiber protected from degradation caused by corrosion from environmental fluids. The optical fiber includes a core-cladding assembly surrounded with a thin quasi metal oxide film (preferably .about.10 nm in depth). Over time, particularly under the influence of the elevated temperatures, the initially deposited reagents of the thin film oxidize or hydrolyze, removing the organic components, and bonding a quasi metal oxide film on the surface of the cladding. The resulting film significantly retards corrosion by blocking the environmental fluids from reacting with flaws in the cladding surface of the fiber, thus improving the mechanical performance and reliability of the optical fiber. In addition, the thin film protects the fiber against incidental abrasions. Alternatively, the quasi metal oxide reagents are deposited into a protective polymer layer of the fiber or a filling compound of a fiber cable, rather than directly onto the cladding surface, whereby the same protective effect is achieved when the reagents diffuse through the polymer layer or filling compound to the core-cladding surface.