Fiber Characterization: PMD, CD and ORL

Over the past twenty years, fiber optic cables have been installed to handle exponentially increasing bandwidth demands. As network speeds increase, optical dispersion compensation becomes more critical in maintaining high signal quality and low bit error rates. Often transmission equipment manufacturers will not guarantee the performance of their systems unless optical return loss (reflectance), polarization mode dispersion (PMD), and chromatic dispersion (CD) tests have been performed and documented. PMD and CD are critical and complex phenomena in fiber optic-spans and can impose severe limitations on how well a high-speed fiber-optic system performs. Prior to the purchase of these systems, the physical plant should be tested to verify that performance levels meet the system’s requirements.

These vital tests require an understanding of the importance of optical cleanliness of the optical connections as well as how to properly perform reflection measurements using an optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR). This includes when (and how) to use deadzone boxes to obtain and document the reflection values of the optical connections.

This three-day course not only provides the classroom instruction necessary to understand the theory and principles of fiber characterization, it also includes hands-on instruction on fiber-optic splicing, connector inspection and cleaning, span testing, and documentation.

Course objective: To provide a practical understanding of the principles behind building and maintaining high-speed networks. Theoretical limits and practical field measurement techniques are demonstrated by calculating and measuring key critical parameters such as PMD, Cd and ORL for evaluation of network upgrades.

Course level: Intermediate to advanced. System designers and experienced fiber technicians find the class and extensive hands-on skills training beneficial.