Introduction
A fiber optic pigtail is a pre-installed connector on one end of an optical cable and a length of exposed fiber at the other end. The term “pigtail” comes from the fact that it resembles a pig’s tail, with the connector being its head. Fiber optic pigtails are used in all kinds of equipment or box splice connection, integrated connection and cross connection in indoor optical links. This type of termination is done by fusion splicing (optical fiber fusion splicing).
Fiber optic pigtail is a fiber optic cable crafted with a single fiber that has a connector pre-installed on one end and a length of exposed fiber at the other.
Fiber optic pigtails are used to connect fiber optic patch panels to equipment, fiber optic equipment to fiber optic patch panels and/or connecting two pieces of equipment. The exposed length of the pigtail can be cut with a pair of scissors or a knife.
The length of the exposed portion may vary depending on how much is needed for each application (from 1 inch up).
Most fiber optic patch panels are terminated with fiber optic pigtails. All fiber connectors have some amount of loss. In order to minimize this loss, when different fibers need to be joined together, fusion splicing is the best way. Fusion splices are generally preferred because they have lower insertion loss and much less reflectance than mechanical splices.
Fusion splicing is the best way to join fibers. In fusion splicing, two ends of different fiber are melted together with an electric arc and then cooled down by applying plastic coating to both ends. This technique is also called fusion bonding or plastic bonding as it involves melting two ends of fibers together and then gluing them with plastic coating.
There are several advantages of using this method over other types of connectors such as mechanical or crimp connectors:
- Fusion splicing has lower insertion loss than other types of connectors. The average insertion loss for fusion-spliced pigtails is around 0.5 dB while that for crimp connectors and mechanical splices can be more than 1 dB (0.5dB to 2dB).
The connector terminations on the other end of the jumper cables are then mated to the panel’s pigtails where the fusion splicing takes place, creating a quick and clean way to join fibers without connectors in the path.
The connector terminations on the other end of the jumper cables are then mated to the panel’s pigtails where the fusion splicing takes place, creating a quick and clean way to join fibers without connectors in the path.
Fusion splicing is generally preferred because it has lower insertion loss and much less reflectance than mechanical splices. Fusion splicing also allows you to use a single fiber cable for longer distances, but if you need more than 1 km/mi of distance, you should look into ribbon cables instead.
The most common type of optical pigtails used for termination purposes is: simplex, duplex, 12 core, 24 core 36 core and 48 core optical pigtails.
- The most common type of optical pigtails used for termination purposes is: simplex, duplex, 12 core, 24 core 36 core and 48 core optical pigtails.
- Optical pigtail terminations are designed to meet the requirements of different applications such as data transmission or fiber optic cable testing equipment like OTDRs that require light source input ports or power supply output ports.
Simplex – 1 mm simplex optical pigtail consists of one simplex optical cable fitted with an LC/SC/FC/ST/MU connector at one end, while the other end is left bare or can be reinforced by KFRP strength member. They are widely used in all kinds of equipment or box splice connection, integrated connection and cross connection in indoor optical links.
Also known as simplex, a 1 mm simplex optical pigtail consists of one simplex optical cable fitted with an LC/SC/FC/ST/MU connector at one end, while the other end is left bare or can be reinforced by KFRP strength member. They are widely used in all kinds of equipment or box splice connection, integrated connection and cross connection in indoor optical links.
Conclusion
We hope you have a better understanding of what an optical fiber pigtail is. This article covered many aspects of the topic, including how they are used and the different types that exist. We also discussed some common terms associated with these cables, including single-mode and multi-mode fibers. If you’re interested in learning more about fiber optic patch panels or any other related topics, please feel free contact us today!
