What is a fiber optic coupler?

Fiber optic coupler is used to split the fiber optic light into several parts at a certain ratio. fiber optic coupler are important passive components used in FTTX networks. A fiber-optic splitter is a device that takes a single fiber optics signal and divides it into multiple signals. Fiber optic is a type of technology that uses an optical signal instead of an electrical one to send data from one place to another. The cable is made either of glass or plastic coated in plastic, instead of the copper wire that was commonly used in the past. But two kinds of fiber splitters are popular used, one is the traditional fused type fiber optic coupler (FBT coupler), which features competitive prices; the other is PLC fiber optic coupler, which is compact size and suit for density applications. Both of them have its advantages to suit for different requirement. The use of fiber optic technology has become increasingly popular for several reasons. Fiber optic cables are much less sensitive to electrical interference, marking them more reliable than older types of cabling. They are also able to carry very large amounts of data in comparison with that older systems can handle. This makes them very efficient, despite the facts that there are some drawbacks to the system. The cables  require a thicker covering to protect the optical cables and they also need to have repeaters installed to boost the signal strength in order for the system to work, two hindrances to the use of this technology.

Despite the limitations, fiber optics technology is in use for both home and commercial applications. The most common type of fiber optic coupler splits the output evenly, with half the signal going to one leg of the output and half going to the other. It’s possible to get splitters that use a different split ratio, putting a larger amount of the signal to one side of the splitter than the other. The Splitters are identified with a number that represents the signal division, such as 50/50 if the split is even, or 80/20 if 80% of the signal goes to one side and only 20% to the other.

Some types of the fiber optic coupler are actually able to work in either direction. This means that if the device is installed in one way, it acts as a splitter and divides the incoming signal into two parts, sending out two separate outputs. If it is installed in reverse, it acts as a coupler, taking two incoming signals and combing them into a single output. Not every fiber optic coupler can be used this way, but those that can are labeled as reversible or as coupler/splitters.