Graphene in the Core of Optical Fibers !

-Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov were awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics “for groundbreaking experiments regarding the two-dimensional material graphene

–What is Graphene?

• Graphene, a carbon material, is the thinnest and strongest material known. It is also known as “The Wonder Material”.
• It is a two-dimensional (2D) material composed of carbon atoms linked in a hexagonal lattice.
• It is extracted from graphite. Graphite is arranged in a 3D crystalline manner, whereas, graphene is a 2D crystal only an atom thick.

-Graphene in the Core of Optical Fibers

The advantage of using graphene in the core of optical cables is by replacing the existing silicon, plastic, etc.

It is found that the numerical aperture (NA), acceptance angle, phase difference, etc. are increased which ultimately increases the performance of optical fibers and will be much more advantageous for telecommunication industries

-Optical fibers made of graphene core are more advantageous than existing silica material.

They have a very high NA of 1.02 then the maximum possible by silica of 0.9.

The acceptance angle for the maximum value of silica is 64º. If NA > 1.00 is considered then the acceptance angle will be 90º

So all the rays will be collected and propagated through the fiber.

But theoretically, it is impossible. For graphene, the value is also satisfactory same as just 90º. The time delay due to dispersion will be very small in the case of graphene core fibers than existing silica core fibers. The larger NA will increase fiber-coupled power.

It will reduce bandwidth losses, losses due to connectors and angles, and bending losses. Further graphene is mechanically more stable than silica.

-Glass or silica has a refractive index value ranging from 1.44 to 1.48. Due to the large difference in the refractive index, it cannot be used as a cladding of those optical fibers whose cores are made of graphene. So for this purpose will choose crystalline arsenic trisulfide (As2S3).

Advantages Of Graphene?

• It is about 200 times stronger than steel
• Graphene is the world’s most robust material and hence can be utilized to increase the strength of other materials.
• It is a better conductor of electricity & heat compared to copper.
• It is nearly transparent.
• It is impermeable to gases.

Disadvantages Of Graphene?

• The creation of high-quality graphene is an expensive and complex process.
• Being a great conductor of electricity, graphene cannot be switched off. Scientists are working on rectifying this.
• The main disadvantage of graphene as a catalyst is its susceptibility to oxidative environments.
• In order to grow graphene, toxic chemicals are used at high temperatures. Due to this, it exhibits some poisonous qualities.