Fiber Optic Testing and

Troubleshooting

Stan Kubota, Exsell Training Services

Updated 11/26/2001

8/7/1998 Exsell Training Services 1

 Agenda
• Review of Tools in Use Today
• Review of Measurements Required Today
• Construction Testing
• Maintenance Testing and Troubleshooting
• Tips

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 Review of Measurements
Required Today
• Fiber Attenuation Characteristics (dB/km)
• Transmitted Power Level, Receive Power
Level (instantaneous and over time, watts,
dBm)
• Insertion Loss, Attenuation, End to End
Loss Measurements (dB)

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 Fiber Loss

Corning
AT&T

uManufacturers’ specs include

fiber loss at specified
wavelength expressed in dB/km
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 Link Loss
Patch Cable System Fiber Patch Cable

Transmitter FPPU Splice FPP Receiver

Loss of complete system from transmitter to receiver

including system interconnects.

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 Review of Measurements
Required Today
• Fault Location, Distance related
Measurements
• Optical Return Loss Measurement
• Reflectance
• Optical Spectrum
• Polarization Mode Distortion (PMD)

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 Pictorial View of ORL

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 Optical Spectrum Analyzer
Typical Output

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Polarization Mode Distortion (PMD)
Theoretical fiber

Hi-Birefringent Fiber

PMD Delay

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 Review of Tools in Use Today
• Light Source • Powermeter
– LED – Wavelengths
– Laser – Referencing
– CW (Continuous – Memory
Wave) – Bi-directional Testing
– Modulated (2kHz) – 2kHz Detection
– Monitoring

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 Review of Tools in Use Today
• Optical Return Loss Meter
• Visual Fault Locator (VFL)
• OTDR
• Optical Signal and Direction Detector
• Fiber Optic Talk Set
• Variable Attenuator

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 Review of Tools in Use Today
• Optical Tap or Programmable Switch
• Optical Spectrum Analyzer (OSA)
• Polarization Mode Distortion Analyzer

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 Construction Testing
• Fiber on Reel
– Verifying fiber cable integrity as received from
the factory
– Verifying manufacturers specifications for the
fiber in the cable
– OTDR, real time mode, use first fiber as
reference trace to compare all other fibers to

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 Construction Testing
• Fiber Installed
– Verifying fiber cable integrity after installation
– Verifying end to end continuity of each fiber
– OTDR, real time mode, use first fiber as
reference trace to compare all other fibers to

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 Construction Testing
• End to End Testing
– powermeter, lightsource testing, both directions
– optical return loss and PMD, as required
– assures no transpositions, catches any bad patch
panel adapters or pigtail connectors
– identifies problem fiber runs
– OTDR trace of one typical fiber, verify distance

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 A B

850nm 1300nm

850nm FIBER NETWORK -20.0

ON
ON 850nm

1300nm
OFF 1300nm
OFF 1550nm

Source
Power Meter

Typical Insertion Loss Measurement after Referencing

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 A B
1310 nm, 1550 nm to
the A side
1310 nm, 1550 nm to
the B side

FIBER NETWORK

FOT-920 Max Tester

FOT-920 Max Tester

I/O FasTest Insertion I/O

Loss Measurement

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 Construction Testing
• Troubleshooting Problems Found in End to
End testing
– finding where the high loss feature is
– finding the disconnect
– patch panel connector check
– obtain correct optical distances to features
– use the VFL and OTDR

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 Construction Testing
• Cable Plant Acceptance
– Report on End to End Loss Measurements
– Report on Optical Distances to All Features
– Notes, comments, reminders, cautions

– What are your standards?

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 Construction Testing
• Documentation and Record Keeping
– As built loss, distance, ORL, and PMD
– Create and use a standard labeling system
– Locate the documentation in a central location
– Provide rapid access to information
– Update as changes are made

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 Maintenance Testing and
Troubleshooting Techniques
• What indicators are available?
• Check the obvious
• Use the records and documentation
• Determine the most advantageous
location(s) for troubleshooting
• Deploy resources, people and equipment

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 Maintenance Testing and
Troubleshooting Techniques
• Locating the break or problem
– VFL, Visual Fault Locator
• useful on distances under 3km
• 670 nm red light leak shows where break or problem
might be
• useful with jumpers to do quick assessment of
connector quality
• check pigtail splices, close in transition splice

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 Visual Fault Locator

Light emission due to bends

Typical range is 5 km

Connector End Face Quality

Visual Light Source (670 nm)

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 Source used with Live Fiber
Detector
Direction of light, level, and 2 kHz

Light Source, CW or 2 kHz modulated Live Fiber Detector

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 Maintenance Testing and
Troubleshooting Techniques
• Locating the break or problem
– OTDR,Optical Time Domain Reflectometer
• setup ….what index of refraction, what pulse width,
what averaging time, what total display distance, is
there a reference trace from previous recordings
• shooting the fiber and diagnosis … do I see a good
launch, do I see the end, should I adjust the “setup”
and shoot again, what problems are there

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 OTDR Basics
OTDR
Laser Pulser

Connector Splice EOF

Coupler

Amplifier Detector

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 OTDR Dead Zone
• Caused by the pulse being launched into the
fiber under test
• The wider the pulse width is, the larger the
dead zone
• Every reflective event causes this dead zone
• Rough calculation for length of dead zone is
DZ = PW x Speed of Light
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 Event Dead Zone
• The ability to DETECT an event
that closely follows a reflective
event
• There is one Event Dead Zone
for each reflective event
• Bigger reflectance (saturated)
means larger Event Dead Zone
1.5 dB • Measured on the trace at 1.5 dB
from the peak of the reflective
event

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 Resolving Features
• Smaller pulse width launch pulse means
more resolution in defining features on fiber
• Also means less power is being launched
into fiber, resulting in less distance being
covered
• Larger pulse width means less resolution,
but longer distances

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 Resolution
Patch Cord
Network • 1000ns (1us) pulse covers
OTDR C C S S close in connections
5 m 5 m 200 m • 30ns pulse begins to
Pulse discover close in
1 us connections
• With a 10ns pulse you
Pulse can measure every thing
30 ns including your first
connector!
Pulse • However you can’t go
10 ns very far with a 10 ns
pulse

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 Sampling Resolution
• Distance Range / number of acquisition points
• It’s a physical specification of the OTDR
• It has nothing to do with accuracy!
• Example: 80 km /16000pts = 5 meters (two events 3
meters apart would not be seen by the OTDR).

5m

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 Offset Acquisition for Added
Resolution
• In essence placing the OTDR acquisition
memory at a location where it is most
effectively used
• Minimum acquisition memory should be
16K data points
• Offset should be in feet or meters from the
front connection of the OTDR

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 Optical Distance vs. Physical
Cable Distance
• OTDR measures optical distance using an
internal timer, timing the pulse sent and the
time the event returns to the OTDR
• Fiber spirals in cable, fiber length is not
equal to sheath marking length
• Maintenance coils, splice tray coils, etc. add
to the discrepancy between physical
distance and optical distance
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 patch panel OSP cable

OSP splice case

wall mount
transition splice

OSP cable
OSP splice
case

OSP splice case

patch panel

cable coil
wall mount
transition splice

Physical Distance vs. Optical Distance

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 Reflectance
• An event at a specific point in an OTDR
trace, a Fresnel reflection, change in IOR
• Indicated by an upward movement of the
OTDR trace, an increase in reflected power
• Perfect reflector, a flat surface reflects 4%
of the incident power or about -14.7dB
• OTDR end of fiber reflectance value gives
connector quality information

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 OTDR Ghost
• Apparent feature or event on OTDR trace
caused by the launched pulse reflecting off
features in the fiber with power levels high
enough to be captured by the OTDR
• Distance measurements to these features is
some multiple of real events
• Loss across these apparent features is zero

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 “Gainer” Splice
• Indicated by an apparent increase or gain in
returned power level at the splice location
• Caused by a number of factors such as
mismatches in numerical aperture, core
diameter, mode field diameter, or back
scatter characteristics of the two fibers
spliced
• Viewed from the opposite direction will
result in a definite loss

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 Pulse Suppressor
• A known length (typically 1000 ft) of fiber
placed between the OTDR and the fiber
under test, acts as a long jumper
• Originally used to “suppress” the dead zone
• Dead zone cannot be suppressed
• Useful for allowing a measurement of loss
of the first mated pair at the patch panel
• Useful for measuring fiber loss (dB/km) on
short fiber runs
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 Tips and Things to Watch For
• All Manufacturers are not 100% defect free
(this is not to say that they produce poor
products)
• Fiber can have variations in core size, core
to cladding concentricity, micro-voids, etc.
that exist at random locations on the fiber,
and tests okay at the factory

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 Tips and Things to Watch For
• Connectors, Jumpers, Pigtails while
manufactured in a clean environment and
with precision machines may also have
defects
– film on connectors, trapped dust/dirt from
protective covers
– ferrule to fiber concentricity offsets

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 Tips and Things to Watch For
• Patch panels, adapters or feed-throughs
– trapped debris in adapter
– loose or faulty connector insertion
– out of tolerance adapter sleeves
• Transmitters
– LED or Laser output varying over time
– on board connector, adapter problems

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 Tips and Things to Watch For
• Receivers
– detector input power margin variation
– on board connector, adapter problems
• Test Equipment
– dirty connectors, bad jumpers
– internal connectors and adapters worn
– not properly referenced
– not in calibration

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 Tips and Things to Watch For
• Real Time Fiber Monitoring
– use single, representative, spare fiber in a cable,
from all cables to be monitored
– use remotely controllable OTDR
– use programmable optical switch (1 x N)
– program to scan the fibers to be tested, to alarm
at discrepancies
– active fibers can be monitored via WDM and
1625 nm wavelength OTDR
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 1310
1310
1550

What is a WDM? 1550

• A fiber coupling technique allowing two

wavelengths to be combined onto a single
fiber, or two wavelengths to be de-coupled
from a single fiber onto multiple fibers
• The coupling ratio between incoming and
outgoing wavelengths is rigorously
controlled, optimized for 1310,1550 or
1625nm
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 Tips and Things to Watch For
• Cleanliness Is Everything in Fiber Optics
– splicing, testing, turning up equipment
– clean clean clean
• Safety Is Even More Important
– glass and materials disposal
– cover all open patch panel adapters not in use
– know your LED and laser emission classes
– know the limitations of your equipment

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 Commercial Time
• Exsell Sales Associates can supply all the
equipment referred to in this presentation
• In addition we conduct formal training on
fiber optics technology
• In addition we supply cable, patch panels,
jumpers, adapters, and all related fiber optic
components

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 The End
• Questions
• Contacts
– Stan Kubota, Exsell Sales Associates
• 800-873-1873
– Paul Raine, Exsell Sales Associates
• 800-873-1873

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