<title>Local area network applications of plastic optical fiber</title>

Abstract

The information explosion that occurred in the 1980s led to the widespread introduction of personal computers to the office, laboratory, and factory environments. The need to share information and resources amongst workstations demanded a networking solution, specifically a local area network (LAN). Since that time many media have been developed for use in LANs, each meeting a specific user demand. Glass fiber was developed for use in long distance, high bandwidth applications, but the high cost of hardware and installation has daunted users. Twisted pair was developed as a low cost alternative medium for use in shorter distance applications. However, as computer applications have become more graphics intensive, LANs have been required to transmit a much greater volume of information, necessitating a media with much higher bandwidth. Since twisted pair cannot support the higher signalling rates, there has been significant interest in a low cost fiber solution. This paper discusses the suitability of plastic optical fiber (POF) for use in local area networks. It outlines the cost and performance advantages offered by POF, discusses the inherent limitations of the medium, and defines an application space where POF is the optimal solution.