Cleave a Large-Diameter Silica Fiber Using a Hand-Held Scribe | Thorlabs Insights

An optical-quality end face can be achieved when a large-diameter optical fiber is manually cleaved using a hand-held scribe. The procedure is demonstrated using a multimode fiber with a 400 µm diameter core. After stripping the protective polymer buffer from the end of the fiber and securing the fiber to a flat surface, a hand-held scribe is used to score the top surface of the fiber. The scribe should create a shallow nick in the fiber's cladding, away from the fiber's core. When cleaving smaller diameter fibers, avoid creating too deep of a nick by reducing the scribing force and sweeping motion. In some cases, it is sufficient to lightly press a stationary scribe to the fiber. Applying a longitudinal tension to the fiber, across the nicked region, cleaves the fiber. Also demonstrated is the visual evaluation of the end face quality using an eye loupe. A good quality end face will be a flat plane, perpendicular to the fiber's long axis. The light output from the cleaved end face was also observed on a viewing screen, and tips are shared for inspecting the output light distribution for information about the quality of the end face. 0:00 - Introduction 1:21 - Protective Buffer is Stripped from the Fiber End 1:42 - Fiber End is Immobilized, Scribed, and Cleaved 3:04 - Quality of the End Face is Inspected Using an Eye Loupe 3:31 - Scribing and Cleaving Demonstration is Repeated 4:11 - Output Light Pattern is Related to Cleave Quality Components used in this demonstration include: Fiber Buffer Stripper: https://www.thorlabs.com/newgrouppage... S90R Ruby Scribe: https://www.thorlabs.com/newgrouppage... BFT-FSSMA SMA Bare Fiber Terminator: https://www.thorlabs.com/newgrouppage... EYL10X 10X Eye Loupe: https://www.thorlabs.com/newgrouppage... BFG1 Fiber Grippers: https://www.thorlabs.com/newgrouppage... M625F2 Fiber-Coupled LED: https://www.thorlabs.com/newgrouppage... EDU-VS2 Viewing Screen: https://www.thorlabs.com/newgrouppage... HFF001 Quick-Release Adjustable Fiber Clamp: https://www.thorlabs.com/newgrouppage... AMA025 Free-Standing Platform: https://www.thorlabs.com/newgrouppage... For more photonics how-to videos, visit https://www.thorlabs.us/newgrouppage9....