Abstract: An optical fiber drop cable for carrying one or more optical fibers from a curb to a customer premises. The optical fiber drop cable comprises first and second ribbon-like longitudinal support members disposed one atop the other and having one or more optical fibers disposed between them in a longitudinal direction of the first and second ribbon-like longitudinal support members. The first and second ribbon-like longitudinal support members each have first and second edges and inner and outer surfaces. The first edge of the first ribbon-like longitudinal support member is secured to the first edge of the second ribbon-like longitudinal support member and the second edge of the first ribbon-like longitudinal support member is secured to the second edge of the second ribbon-like longitudinal support member.

Abstract: Dual concentric core fiber is used for optical communication. Inbound messages lying in a first wavelength channel are received from a terminal portion of the fiber, and outbound messages lying in a second such channel are injected into the terminal portion. The optical fiber has at least one annular portion surrounding a central core portion. The inbound messages are received from the annular portion, and the outbound messages are injected into the central core portion. Alternatively, the inbound messages are received from the central core portion, and the outbound messages are injected into the annular portion.

Abstract: A beam splitter/combiner module for multiplexing and/or demultiplexing a plurality of optical signals having at least three different wavelengths &lgr;1, &lgr;2, and &lgr;3 traveling through the module. The module includes a first dichroic mirror having low loss transmission over a first preselected range of wavelengths including &lgr;1 and &lgr;2 so as to substantially transmit signals having wavelengths &lgr;1 and &lgr;2 through the first mirror and along an optical signal path of the module. The first dichroic mirror also has high reflectance over a second preselected range of wavelengths including &lgr;3 so as to substantially reflect from the first mirror signals having wavelength &lgr;3.

Abstract: A high-capacity optical fiber network [100, 200] includes wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) within the 1.4 micron (&mgr;m) wavelength region (i.e., 1335-1435 nm). Such a system includes optical fiber [130] whose peak loss in the 1.4 &mgr;m region is less than its loss at 1310 nm. The optical fiber has a zero dispersion wavelength (&lgr;0) at about 1310 nm, and linear dispersion between about 1.5 and 8.0 ps/nm-km within the 1.4 &mgr;m region. At least three WDM channels operate at 10 Gb/s in the 1.4 &mgr;m wavelength region and have a channel separation of 100 GHz. In one illustrative embodiment of the invention, a broadcast television channel, having amplitude modulated vestigial sideband modulation, simultaneously operates in the 1.3 &mgr;m region (i.e., 1285-1335 nm) and/or the 1.55 &mgr;m region (i.e., 1500-1600 nm). In another embodiment of the invention, 16 digital data channels are multiplexed together in the 1.55 &mgr;m region, each channel operating at about 2.5 Gb/s.

Abstract: communications grade glass optical fibers are protected from static fatigue failure by an initial coating that reacts with surface silanol groups, thereby to occupy or tie up water vapor reaction sites. The OH surface radicals may be bonded to by condensation reactions including: esterification, carboxylation, etherification, chlorination and ammination. For speed and simplicity of reaction, silanation with silanes is attractive as, for example, hexamethyldisilizane (HMDS). The reaction is sufficiently fast to use in a continuous fiber drawing and in-line coating process. The barrier coating may be selected to bond relatively strongly to an outer abrasion protection polymeric coating. Bonding is also enhanced by creating an initial minimum, evenly distributed concentration, of surface silanol groups, for example, about 5 groups/100 Angstrom units in any direction. The reaction molecule is also large enough to act as a water vapor barrier.