Optical fibers are the most effective material for transmitting information over long distances. In fact, all telecommunication networks currently use fiber optic segments in their structure.
In industry optical fiber is using in fiber optic cables.
Fiber optic cables made our lives easier. Fiber optic patch cords carry information over great distances in no time and in safe environments. Moreover, they are used in so many domains! These are just a few examples of how fiber optic cables can be used in the day to day life:
Computer networking – to boost communication speed;
Medical field – for surgery and dentistry;
Internet connection;
Enhancing cable TV;
Decorations;
Military and space applications – provides a reliable, safe, and fast medium for data transmission;
A reliable solution. The weather conditions do not influence the fiber optic cables conditions in any way. They remain dependable and the connectivity will not be interrupted by heat, moisture, or even lightning.
Cables can vary from the simplest cables – composed of a clad layer with plastic tube-modules underneath and fibers inside, to super-sophisticated – composed of many layers and having two-level armoring like in underwater transoceanic cables.
There are cables for installing outdoor and indoor (indoor laying is rare and is mostly used in premium data centers where everything should be flawless and fancy).
Cables can be used for suspension (with a Kevlar or rope), for laying in the ground (with armor made of iron wires), for laying in cable conduits (with corrugated metal armor), for underwater installation (complex super-protected multilayer structure), for suspension on power transmission line towers (apart from transferring data, they are used as ground wearers). Cables for suspending on poles (with Kevlar) and for laying in the ground (with armor) are used most often, while cables with a rope and with a corrugated metal armor come seldom. Another type of a cable often used is essentially a thin paired optical patch cord (with a yellow coating for a single-mode cable and an orange coating for a multimode cable, with some Kevlar and one fiber; two coatings are paired). Other optical cables (unprotected, underwater, and for laying indoor) are very rarely used (exotic).
A low-cost alternative. On the long run, the overall costs of ownership, here including installation, maintenance, and usage is cheaper than other options. Fiber optic is a long-term solution which requires little maintenance. Moreover, the maintenance costs decrease over time.