TABLE OF CONTENTS Like Bell's photophone, the purpose of fiber optics is to convert a signal to light, move the light over distance, and then reconstruct the original signal from the light. The equipment used to do this job has to overcome all of the same problems that Bell encountered, while carrying more data over a much greater distance.
In this chapter, you will learn about the basic components that transmit, receive, and carry the optical signal. You will also learn some of the methods used to convert signals to light, and light back to the original signals, as well as how the light is carried over the distances required.
A link is a signal pathway between two points using some kind of generic cable. The pathway includes a means to send the signal into the cable and a way to receive it at the other end in a useful way.
Any time we send a signal from one point to another over a wire, we are using a link. A simple intercom, for example, consists of the sending station (which converts voice into electrical signals), the wire over which the signals are transmitted, and the receiving station (which converts the electrical signal back into voice).
Links are often described in terms of their ability to send and receive signals as part of a communication system. When described in these terms, they are broken down into simplex and duplex. Simplex means that the link can only send...
