Thermal stability of light transmission on tapered plastic optical fibre coated with PMMA/zircon composites

Abstract

Abstract A study on thermal stability of light transmission on tapered plastic optical fibre (TPOF) due to PMMA/zircon composites coating has been performed. The zircon filler was obtained from purified local zircon sand. The PMMA/zircon composites were produced utilizing acetone at a temperature of 50°C. The TPOF was subjected to a dip coating procedure to apply composite coatings at varying zircon of 0, 0.5, and 1 wt.%. The characterization of light transmission on coated the TPOF, investigated at an environmental temperature range of 30 to 60°C, was conducted using an optical power meter (OPM) and a spectrometer. Based on the OPM measurements, it is known that the output power of the composite coated TPOF exhibits a high degree of linearity, even when subjected to varying environmental temperatures. The coated composite material also exhibits the capability to withstand wavelength peak shift. Therefore, it can be inferred that the composites could resist fluctuations in external temperatures. To fulfil additional objectives, the composite material can be employed as a protective layer for TPOF applications, particularly while operated at temperatures exceeding the ambient conditions.