Guided ray

Guided ray is a ray of light in an optical fiber that is confined primarily to the core.

A guided ray satisfies the relation given by:

$0\leq \sin \theta _{r}\leq {\sqrt {n_{r}^{2}-n_{a}^{2}}}$

where:

θ_r is the angle the ray makes with the fiber axis;

r is the radial position, i.e., radial distance, of the ray from the fiber axis;

n_r is the refractive index at the radial distance r from the fiber axis;

n_a is the refractive index at the core radius, a, i.e., at the core-cladding interface.

Guided rays correspond to bound modes, i.e., guided modes, in terms of modes rather than rays. Synonyms for a guided ray are "bound ray", and "trapped ray".

External links

• Federal Standard 1037C