Low losses for all-fibre attenuator and shutter

Edited by the Electronicstalk editorial team Jul 24, 2001

Two new low-cost high-performance all-fibre components - the Mark II variable optical attenuator and shutter - will be unveiled by ProtoDel at ECOC 2001.

Two new low-cost high-performance all-fibre components - the Mark II variable optical attenuator and shutter - will be unveiled by ProtoDel at ECOC 2001.

Competitively priced, these new all-fibre small footprint devices offer inherent advantages such as low loss of the propagating light wave, high reliability and low reflectivity.

Designed to outperform their industry counterparts, all ProtoDel components are manufactured using a continuous optical fibre, with no in-line interfaces to impede the quality of the signal transmitted.

Both new products can handle up to 200mW of power, offer exceptionally low back reflection rates of -70dB (between 20 and 40dB better than competing technologies) and feature no moving parts leading to greater reliability.

An optional electronic driver circuit designed to drive and control the performance of these components is also available.

Easy to configure, ProtoDel's new variable optical attenuator for single mode fibre and polarisation maintaining fibre applications, can be set to operate at any 'single' channel between 1300 and 1630nm, so eliminating the wavelength dependent loss (WDL) associated with broadband variable optical attenuators.

Polarisation dependent loss is <0.1dB.

High performance is guaranteed thanks to a control driver that zeroes out any variations in performance caused by changes in temperature or wavelength.

Designed to operate over 1300 to 1630nm, ProtoDel's new Mark II shutter can switch from a minimum insertion loss to 40dB insertion loss in less than 1s.

Unlike its industry counterparts, ProtoDel's new shutter does not feature a thermoelectric cooler resulting in lower driver circuit requirements, lower power consumption and great reliability.

Commenting on the new products, Dr Ian Giles, Managing Director, said, "At ProtoDel we are committed to developing and manufacturing compact, high performance, low cost fibre optic components that make effective use of costly board space.

The Mark II variable optical attenuator and shutter are the first in a new range of products, which we are confident will prove popular with design engineers and component buyers keen to improve performance and cut costs".