Fabrication of microstructured polymer optical fibres

A methodology is presented suitable for the fabrication of a wide range of microstructured polymer optical fibres (mPOFs), a recent development where light guidance is achieved through the incorporation of a pattern of air channels that run the entire length of the fibre. We show that the key to good mPOF fabrication is a secondary draw oven that has tight control over the length (15-20 mm) and temperature (+/-1degreesC) of the hot-zone while maintaining fibre draw tension high enough (50-150 g) to ensure an acceptable level of partial hole collapse (30-40%) due to surface tension effects. Diverse mPOFs; with diameters in the range 200-1200 mum have been fabricated with typical standard deviations of 2-3 mum. (C) 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.