We present experimental results demonstrating the possibility of obtaining low-loss splices of microstructured optical fibers (MOFs) by using conventional electric-arc splicers. We show evidence of the effectiveness of the method by splicing two MOFs together as well as a MOF with a standard single mode fiber (SMF). The results are presented in terms of fusion losses and tensile strength. Theoretical calculations of the losses attributable to mode mismatch between the MOF and the SMF suggest that the splicing losses could be further reduced by optimizing the MOF design parameters. For the case of a MOF-MOF splicing, the loss that could be due to a possible rotational misalignment that comes with the non-cylindrical symmetry of the modal distribution is also evaluated.

Date Published: 20 December 2004
PDF: 8 pages
Proc. SPIE 5577, Photonics North 2004: Optical Components and Devices, (20 December 2004); doi: 10.1117/12.567255

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 5577:
Photonics North 2004: Optical Components and Devices
John C. Armitage; Simon Fafard; Roger A. Lessard; George A. Lampropoulos, Editor(s)