Guided ray: Difference between revisions
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A '''guided ray''' (also '''bound ray''' or '''trapped ray''') is a [[ |
A '''guided ray''' (also '''bound ray''' or '''trapped ray''') is a [[Ray (optics)|ray]] of light in a [[multimode optical fiber]], which is confined by the [[core]]. For [[Step-index profile|step index fiber]], light entering the fiber will be guided if it falls within the '''acceptance cone''' of the fiber, i.e. if it makes an angle with the fiber axis that is less than the '''acceptance angle''', |
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:<math>\sin \theta \le \sqrt{n_o^2 - n_c^2}</math> , |
:<math>\sin \theta \le \sqrt{n_o^2 - n_c^2}</math> , |
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Revision as of 06:04, 9 December 2005
A guided ray (also bound ray or trapped ray) is a ray of light in a multimode optical fiber, which is confined by the core. For step index fiber, light entering the fiber will be guided if it falls within the acceptance cone of the fiber, i.e. if it makes an angle with the fiber axis that is less than the acceptance angle,
- ,
where
- θ is the angle the ray makes with the fiber axis, before entering the fiber,
- no is the refractive index along the central axis of the fiber, and
- nc is the refractive index of the cladding.
Rays that fall within this angular range are reflected from the core-cladding boundary by total internal reflection, and so are confined by the core. The confinement of light by the fiber can also be described in terms of bound modes, i.e., guided modes. This treatment is necessary when considering singlemode fiber, since the ray model does not accurately describe the propagation of light in this type of fiber.