TECHNOLOGY NEWS:
High-purity deuterium gas for low water-peak fibre manufacture
Specialising in the supply of industrial gases and vacuum technologies, BOC Group, USA, is now providing optical fibre manufacturers with its patented Spectra-Blend™ gas mixing technology that features precise concentrations and reliable supply of high-purity deuterium gas for use in producing low water-peak fibre. “The presence of moisture in conventional fibres causes high-levels of light attenuation along a portion of the fibre’s transmission spectrum”, explained Mr Art Shirley, Ph.D., director of commercialisation and technology, fibre optics solutions, BOC. “This water-peak is primarily due to hydrogen, which readily diffuses through the glass matrix of an optical fibre. It is trapped at defects in the glass structure and causes light attenuation at wavelengths between 1,360 and 1,460nm”.
To manufacture low water-peak fibres, water levels in the fibre are reduced from 10ppb (parts-per-billion) to less than 1ppb. One process exposes fibre to deuterium gas at elevated temperature and pressure. Concentrated deuterium, diluted deuterium (<10%) in nitrogen, or other custom deuterium blends are used in this process. “Deuterium atoms displace hydrogen atoms from the defect sites. This lowers the water-peak and increases the light carrying/data transmission capability of the fibre”, said Mr Shirley. Using Spectra-Blend™ gas mixing technology allows BOC to supply optical fibre manufacturers with high-purity, zero-tolerance deuterium mixtures with no cylinder-to-cylinder or lot-to-lot variation. The company can also supply solutions integrating high-purity deuterium gas supply with a BOC system to safely blend customised deuterium mixtures onsite and deliver them to their point-of-use. BOC’s proprietary gas-blending process allows precise, flexible, and real-time control of deuterium mixing for use in multiple deuteration chambers.
BOC has been supplying high-purity gases, chemicals, equipment, services and technology to the optical fibre manufacturing industry since the late 1970's. Its Fibre Optic Solutions group is dedicated to leveraging BOC’s technology leadership to solve the complex needs and challenges of optical fibre manufacturers.
Company: |
The BOC Group |
Country: |
USA |
Fax: |
+1 908 771 1510 |
Email: |
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Website: |
www.boc.com/of |