optical communication
... often ignored and tucked away in the back of books. Only few universities have full-fledged optics programs, and even fewer have fiber optics programs. Most optics specialists have been trained in other fields like electronics and physics. But today, I will join you to better help your understanding of fiber optics. In my presentation, I will explain the basics and then the in-depth detail of fiber optics. This will answer many of your questions about the topic. You will gain an understanding of this truly awesome technology. I. Basic Theory of Optics and Light Today it is the accepted notion that light is a disturbance in the electromagnetic field that propagates at a definite speed. However, it was not always the case. The origins of light comes from the branch of science called physics!, more specifically quantum mechanics. Before the turn of the 20th century, relatively few knew much if anything about light or how it worked. In 1900 Max Planck hypothesized that light was excited atoms giving off packets of energy, which he called “quanta.” -Planck said that light was a wave. However, five years later a man by the name of Albert Einstein had a hypothesis of his own. He suggested that light itself was not made up of waves, but of packets of energy which he named “photons.” –Einstein said light was a particle. Later in his studies and experiments on light he won the Nobel Prize for his demonstrations which explained the photoelectric effect (the discharge of electrons from matter by the radiation given off, especially in visible light). Einstein’s hypothesis of light being a particle was not accepted by some people. The debate of light theories would continue for decades before finally accepting that light acted as both a wave and a particle. Though, during this time Einstein made another discovery called stimulated emissions. Using Neil Bohr’s model of an atom, electrons were in certain orbits determined by the energy level in each electron. The electrons only absorb a certain amount of energy to go up to the next level of orbit and it releases a specific amount of energy when dropping down to a lower orbit. Through this it explained why atoms in a given gas like neon give off distinct light and distinct wavelength. II. The History of Fiber Optics The communications business we have today is a multibillion dollar industry. They spring up just like the more recent dot-com fad did, tons of companies trying to get a s...