Hard-clad silica optical fiber
Introduction '''Hard-clad silica''' (HCS) or '''polymer-clad fiber''' (PCF) is an optical fiber with a core of silica glass (diameter: 200 µm) and an optical cladding made of special plastic (diameter: 230 µm). In contrast to all-silica fiber, the core and cladding can be separated from each other. Configuration of HCS- and fiber glass-fiber optic cablesSpectral attenuation of fiber opticsDue to their medium bandwidths and transmission rates of less than 100 Mbit/s, HCS fibers are suitable for distances of up to 2 km, e.g. in local networks in buildings and industry. Generally, the following applies: The higher the attenuation, the shorter the distance.For comparison, plastic optical fibers (POF) have low bandwidths and transmission rates (typically 100 Mbit/s). They also have a high attenuation and therefore, the maximum distance is around 100 meters. Glass fibers on the other hand have very high bandwidths and transmission rates of up to GBit/s. The attenuation in glass fibres is much lower, glass fibers can cover distances of more than 10 km. Regarding bandwidth and distances, HCS fibers are situated between POF and multimode or singlemode fibers.+ Application area fiber types  Fiber type Core/Cladding  Application area  Distance  Data rate  Glass fiber 9/125 µm 10/125 µm  telecommunications more than 10 km  MBit/s up to Gbit/s  Glass fiber 50/125 µm 62.5/125 µm  local networks in medium areas, buildings and telecommunications up to 4 km  <155 Mbit/s  HCS  200/230 µm  local networks in buildings and telecommunications  up to 2 km  <100 Mbit/s  Plastic fiber (POF)  980/1000 µm  local networks in buildings, industry and automotive up to 100 m  100 Mbit/s
See also *Plastic-clad silica fiber == References == * Bundschuh, Bernhard; Himmel, Jörg: ''Optische Informationsübertragung''. Oldenbourg Verlag, München, Wien 2003 * Eberlein, Dieter und 4 Mitautoren: ''Lichtwellenleiter-Technik.'' 4., neu bearbeitete und erweiterte Auflage, Expert Verlag 2002 * Ch. Beha GmbH: ''Fibel der Lichtwellenleitertechnik''== External links == *  Hard Clad Silica at Photonics *  Hard Clad Silica at ITWissen