Fiber Optic Splitter Loss Calculator

Splitter loss are the loss in light power that occurs as a result of the optical splitter dividing the light power. Splitter loss is important to account for when planning an network because the splitter consumes some of the optical power budget of the network. Splitter loss is also important to consider in passive optical networks because the loss decrease the signal strength of the data traveling through the network.

An ideal optical splitter will distribute the light power according to mathematical principle. For instance, an ideal 1×8 optical splitter will divide the light power by 9 dB. This is because each of the 8 output ports of the splitter will receive only one-eighth of the original light power.

Light Loss in Splitters and Fiber

However, PLC splitter will experience some loss due to imperfections in the waveguide of the splitter. PLC splitters will add approximately 1.5 dB of loss to the network. This loss must be accounted for in addition to the loss calculated from mathematical principles of the splitter.

Furthermore, using multiple splitter to form a network will result in a loss of optical power at each stage of the network. This is referred to as the cascade penalty of the network. In addition to optical splitters, another factor that will reduce the light power of the fiber is fiber attenuation.

Fiber attenuation is the reduction of light power in the fiber, and it depend on two factors: the wavelength of the light that is traveling through the fiber and the type of fiber that is being used. Using a wavelength of 1550 nm, the fiber will lose approximately 0.2 dB of light power every kilometer of fiber. However, using a wavelength of 850 nm in a multimode fiber will result in increase attenuation of the signal.

The wavelength of the light that is used can have a strong effect on the data transmission because the wavelength will determine the amount of absorption of the signal by the glass of the fiber. Furthermore, the wavelength can also help control how far the signal will travel through the fiber by controlling the attenuation of the signal. Connectors will also cause some loss in the fiber.

Each pair of connectors will result in the loss of 0.2 dB of power; however, the connectors must be free of any particulate that may damage the fiber. If the connectors are not clean, the loss of power may be greater than 0.2 dB. Splices will cause less loss in the fiber than connectors.

Fusion splices will only cause the loss of 0.1 dB of light power. However, the number of connector pairs must be accounted for in the installation of the network; each connector will increase the loss of the fiber link. To determine whether the link between the transmitter of data and the receiver will function properly, the optical power budget of the link must be calculated.

The optical power budget is calculated by taking the launch power of the light source and subtract the sensitivity of the receiver. From this value, the splitter loss, attenuation loss, and connector loss must be subtracted. Furthermore, 10 percent of the initial calculation can be subtracted to account for the aging of the component.

If the result of the calculation is a positive value, the link will function; otherwise, the link will not function and the network must be redesigned. The type of fiber that will be used in the network will also change according to the distance that the signal needs to travel. For example, the range of multimode fiber is 300 meters; it is often used in laboratory environment.

For long distance, however, single-mode fiber will be used. Using reference tables for fiber optics, it is possible to determine the loss of power of various components of the fiber. For instance, reference tables indicate that a 1×16 PLC splitter will result in a total loss of 13.7 dB of light power.

Furthermore, the ends of the fiber must be kept clean. Any dirty fiber ends will result in the increase of the loss of the signal at the connector; this will reduce the optical power budget of the network.