THERMAL-DIFFUSION EXPANDED CORE FIBER ARRAY, MANUFACTURING METHOD FOR THERMAL-DIFFUSION EXPANDED CORE FIBER ARRAY, OPTICAL ARRAY DEVICE WITH FIBER, AND MANUFACTURING METHOD FOR OPTICAL ARRAY ELEMENT

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for easily and inexpensively manufacturing a thermal-diffusion expanded core (TEC) fiber array, and to provide a TEC fiber array manufactured by the method.

SOLUTION: The fibers in the center part of a fiber array of which the coated parts are bonded to each other are unraveled into its separate fibers mechanically or using chemicals without unraveling its both ends. The coatings of unraveled fibers at the center part are peeled mechanically or using chemicals to expose the bare fiber arrays, the exposed bare fiber arrays are arranged side by side, both ends of the bare fiber arrays are pinched by a holder and cores are warmed by a burner to be expanded to 20μm to 40μm, then the holder is removed. Further, after pulling the fiber array from both sides so that the bare fiber arrays are uniformly arranged side by side, the fiber array is sandwiched by cloth or paper soaked with an adhesive for bundling coated optical fibers, soaking the array in the adhesive to stick the coatings of the separated fibers (or cutting off the fiber array at the center part of the expanded core), thereby the TEC fiber array is manufactured.

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