FIber Inspection: What are the different zones and how are they used in the Pass/Fail analysis?


Applies to

FIP-410B, FIP-420B, FIP-425B, FIP-430B, FIP-435B, ConnectorMax2

Question

What are the different zones ( A, B, C & D) and how are they used in the Pass/Fail analysis?

Answer

               

As shown in the image above from a ConnectorMax 2 report, there are four(4) analysis zones.

Zone A: Core - This is the central zone and includes the critical core of the fiber. For a single mode connector to PASS there should be no defects in this zone. In the example, there are 2 defects in the A zone.

Zone B: Cladding - This zone contains the fiber cladding that surrounds the core. Some small defects are accepted in the cladding zone. In the example there are 2 defects > 5 microns which would cause the connector to FAIL.

Zone C: Adhesive - This is a narrow zone ( 10 microns in the example shown) and includes the area where the bare fiber is bonded (adhesive) inside the connector ferrule. The analysis ignores this zone.

Zone D: Contact - This zone is the polished area of the connector ferrule (generally white ceramic)  surrounding the bare fiber. In the above example, any number of scratches and any number of defects < 10 microns are accepted, but defects > 10 microns will result in a FAIL.

The capture will display the fiber end-face, including any anomalies (defects, scratches), the different zones (A, B, C & D), and a pass/fail analysis based on selected thresholds/test configuration and Standard.

Note: Analysis is not available on the FIP-410B