Glass manufacturing – Processes – Forming product or preform from molten glass
Patent
1987-06-18
1988-10-04
Lindsay, Robert L.
Glass manufacturing
Processes
Forming product or preform from molten glass
65 13, 65 181, C03B 37023
Patent
active
047754010
ABSTRACT:
The disclosed method of producing optical fiber comprises providing a silica-based glass rod of diameter D that comprises a core region of effective diameter d surrounded by cladding material (D/d typcially>2) and a silica-based porous jacketing tube, inserting the glass core rod into the porous tube, consolidating the porous material and sintering the jacketing tube onto the core rod such that a substantially pore-free optical fiber preform results. Fiber is then drawn from the preform in the conventional manner. Consolidation and sintering is carried out at a temperature below the softening temperature of the material, typically <1600.degree. C. In a preferred embodiment, the porous tube is produced by a sol/gel process that comprises mixing colloidal silica (surface area 5-100 m.sup.2 /g) and water, adding quaternary ammonium hydroxide to the sol such that a pH in the range 11-14 results, lowering the pH into the range 4-11 by addition of methyl or ethyl formate, casting the sol into an appropriate mold and permitting it to gel. The relatively low processing temperature is an advantageous feature of the inventive process that, inter alia, makes it easier to maintain the fiber core concentric with the cladding.
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Fleming Debra A.
Johnson, Jr. David W.
MacChesney John B.
Walz, Jr. Frederick W.
American Telephone and Telegraph Company AT&T Bell Laboratories
Lindsay Robert L.
Pacher Eugen E.
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