Methods and apparatuses for correcting mechanical twist in optical fiber

US7035525B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Fitel USA Corp. · US

Inventors

• Gene Weeks · Duluth, US
• Stephen Owen Mast · Norcross, US
• Zhi Zhou · Selkirk, US
• John F. Ryan · Schaumburg, US
• Harry Garner · Lawrenceville, US
• Siu-Ping Hong · Alpharetta, US
• John Popwell · Lawrenceville, US
• Alan McCurdy · Vinings, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Sep 26, 2002
• Grant date: Apr 25, 2006
• Expiry date: Jun 24, 2023

Classification

• Technology area (CPC C): Chemistry; Metallurgy
• CPC primary: C03B2203/36
• WIPO field: Optics
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

Methods and apparatuses negate a measured mechanical twist of an optical fiber by introducing a counteracting twist to bring the net mechanical twist closer to zero, which reduces the fiber's polarization mode dispersion (PMD). A spool of optical fiber having undesirable mechanical twist is mounted and fiber is drawn from the end of the spool to impart a specified counteracting mechanical twist. Additionally, the spool may be controllably rotated by a control system while optical fiber is drawn there from, allowing the system to generate a precise amount of counteracting mechanical twist in the fiber.