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The section of an optical fiber end which acts as the interface with air or another optical fiber/component. The optical interface of a fiber varies depending upon its design and application. The end-face of a fiber is a convenient way to identify fiber type, structure and orientation, this is particularly useful when assessing HiBi fibers, as illustrated below, with more complex internal structure (namely the bow-tie stress applying parts adjacent to the core) than a standard single-mode fiber.

The fiber end face may be cleaved or polished at an angle, as introducing an angle at the end-face makes the reflection angle exceed the critical angle of the fiber and back reflected light does not re-enter the fiber.

Related Products: Fibercore Fiber Cleavers, Pigtails and Patchcords

Related Terms: Cladding, Highly Birefringent (HiBi), Large Mode Area (LMA) fiber, Stress Applying Parts (SAPs)