Fiber Optic Reference Guide, 3rd Edition

FOREWORD

 

 

Over the last decade, fiber optics has emerged as a key technology component for today's information-centric society. Fiber optics has overcome numerous obstacles along the way. Early on, fiber optics suffered from the “chicken or egg first” syndrome. In other words, the technology would be available at a reasonable price once the demand for the technology was demonstrated. However, the demand would not arise until affordable technology was in place. The second obstacle to growth of the fiber optics industry has been standards. In the early years, the industry suffered from too few standards. Lately, the industry suffers from too many standards that are nearly obsolete by the time they are introduced. Last, competition from other ...