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A Brief History of Fiber Optics
Fiber optics continues to hold a very bright future in the different
industries it has come in contact with. With the vast applications
in these different areas where fiber optics technology is used, one
cant help but wonder how such discovery came about, and be amazed
at how such technology continues to make its mark on industries as
the telecommunications field, medical field, military & space
settings, lighting, computer networks, television and many more.
It is thus fitting to learn some few details on the history of fiber
optics. It is no question the we have indeed realized benefits from
this technology, and it is only proper to pay respects to the
history of fiber optics those points in time that led to the
development of this valuable technology.
Year 1800s in the History of Fiber Optics
In the year 1840, physicists Daniel Collodon (Swiss) and Jacques
Babinet (French) were able to show that it is possible to guide
light along jets of water for fountain displays.
Then in 1854, British physicist John Tyndall showed that light could
be bent on a corner through a curved spout of running water.
The raw and initial concept of total internal reflection came into
being. This concept is in fact, the basis of fiber optics operation.
And this principle has guided fiber optics production and use.
First Few Practical Applications Envisioned
Applications as dental illuminators, transmitting images for
television, sending out signals to facsimile systems were foreseen.
Patents were filed for ideas imagined possible for fiber optics,
while some continued to experiment on perfecting the initial
discovery to have valuable use on a particular industry.
Milestones in the History of Fiber Optics
One such person to actually demonstrate fiber optics image
transmission is Heinrich Lamm a Munich medical student. Next came
Abraham Van Heel when he covered a bare fiber with a transparent
cladding one that has a lower refractive index than the core
material.
Another milestone in the history of fiber optics is the development
of glass-clad fibers. At around 1960, these glass-clad fibers had
around one decibel per meter of attenuation. This was ideal for
medical imaging.
Still at the 1960s, laser technology also came about. In the 1970s,
pure low-loss glass fibers evolved. These developments laid the
groundwork for technology integrations and diversified applications
for the different industries.
Fiber Optics Today
Mainly taking over the telecommunications industry in terms of being
the preferred telecommunications medium, it has also been seen to be
making strong waves in computer network infrastructures and in the
medical environment. Definitely, every field or industry it involves
itself - is history of fiber optics in th.e making
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