Fusion Splicer

A fiber optic fusion splicer is a tool that uses an electric arc for melting two fiber optic cables together at their ends to form a long single fiber. The resulting joint is called a fusion splice and helps in joining two fiber optic cables end to end permanently. We place each fiber into the holder of the splicer. After that, the splicer performs a 3-step process. The first step is alignment. The fusion splicer uses small precise motors for making minute adjustments to the positions of fibers until they are aligned properly. It helps to make the finished splice as much attenuation-free and seamless as possible. The next step is to burn off the impurity. A slightest dust trace or any other impurity can severely damage the ability of a splice to transmit optical signals. It is better to not take any risk when it comes to cleaning. The fibers are cleaned by hand before they are inserted into splicers. Still, a precautionary step of cleaning is adopted in the process. Before fusing the cables together, a small spark is generated between the ends of a fiber to burn off any moisture or remaining dust. The last step is fusion. After aligning the fibers properly and carefully removing any remaining dust or moisture, the last step is to fuse the cables together that will form a permanent splice. Another larger spark is emitted to melt the fiber optic. This keeps the core separate from the cladding that is very essential for a good splices. This minimizes the optical loss. Then we join the melted fiber tips. This forms the splice. Then we perform splice-loss tests to check the optical loss. They show a typical loss of 0.1dB or may be less.