Laser Components has added MM switches to its product range of optical switches. These are available for fibers with a core diameter of 50 µm, 62.5 µm, 100 µm and 200 µm. All switches are available in 1 x 2, 1 x 4, and 2 x 2 designs. SM and PM switches are also available in 1 x 8 and 1 x 12 versions.

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In addition to the telecommunications industry, fiber optic switches are being used increasingly in optical metrology and sensor technology. Laser Components optical switches are based on a micro-mechanical/micro-optical design. This design guarantees high flexibility for many applications, long-term stability and excellent optical properties.

The response times of the switches are 2 ms or less, and a lifetime of greater than 10⁸ switching cycles is guaranteed. The switch is offered as a standard SM for 1260 nm to 1650 nm, as a short wavelength for 400 nm to 690 nm or 700 nm to 1100 nm and as a PM version for polarization-maintaining fibers. Insertion loss typically ranges from 0.7 dB to 1.0 dB, depending on the version. For the standard SM switch, for example, the high precision of the switch units achieves a repetition accuracy of 0.005 dB.