What is Fiber-Optic cabling?
Fiber-Optic cabling is a fiberglass cabling media that sends network signals using light. Fiber-optic cabling has a higher bandwidth capacity than copper cabling and is used mainly for high-speed network Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) or Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) backbones, long cable runs, and connections to high-performance workstations.
How Fiber-optic Works
Fiber-optic cabling consists of a signal-carrying glass core of 5 to 100 microns in diameter (a sheet of paper is about 25 microns thick and a human hair about 75 microns thick), surrounded by a layer of pure silica called cladding, which prevents light from escaping.
Surrounding the cladding are protective layers of acrylic plastic coating, Kevlar fibers for additional strength, and a PVC (polyvinyl chloride) jacket (usually colored a distinctive orange).
Network components use LED or laser diodes to convert electrical signals into light pulses for transmission on fiber-optic cables. An optical detector is used to convert the light pulses back into electrical signals.
