Berkeley Nucleonics (BNC) has announced that its Model 6040 light pulse generator with optical plug-ins from 650 - 1,580nm now includes the option for Polarisation Maintaining (PM) fibre outputs.
PM fibre is a technique used by source laser manufacturers and the interconnecting fibre manufactures to optimise the optical throughput of the entire system.
The fibre axis is aligned according to various keys and results in improved optical integrity, reductions in loss of optical power (measured in joules or milliwatts) and support of a single polarisation state.
'We chose the most reliable PM type available, Panda-PM, for our optical pulse generator as users need signal stability,' said Mark Slattery, application engineer.
There are a variety of PM types available, each having their own properties.
As fibres are never perfectly symmetric, a PM-style device minimises the modal birefringence that occurs in typical single-mode fibres.
The technique incorporates boron-doped stress regions (or 'stress rods') in regions on either side of the fibre core.
BNC light pulse generators provide up to 200mW of controlled optical power, with pulse widths as low as 5nS and adjustable amplitudes in 2mW steps.
The Panda-style PM fibre used in the pulse generators ensures outputs with quantifiable, repeatable properties.
The range of optical pulse generators meets FDA regulations on laser safety and laser marketing protocols.
The company also offers custom light pulse generator development for users needing unusual optical signal sources.
