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Plastic optical fibers tend to have a much higher attenuation, and thus its use becomes limited.
Fluoride glass is composed of fluorides and some metals. While they are quite good due to the fact that they have low attenuation at certain wavelengths. However they are vulnerable to breaking (fragile), moisture and different environmental conditions - on top of that they are difficult to manufacture. They are usually used for very specific cases in medical/industrial applications.
Attenuation by material:
| Material | Attenuation Coefficients |
|---|---|
| Silica | 0.2dB/km |
| POF (Plastic optical fibers) | 1dB/m |
| HMFG (Heavy metal fluoride gas) | at mid Infrared range can be <0.2dB/km |
Impurities are the main cause of attenuation in standard silica glasses. Synthetic fused silica is the base for the communacation fibers, it is very clear because impurities are reduced to a part per billion or less. All plastic fibers have attenauation much higher than silica fibers. They are used for image transmission or short distance communications.
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