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Planar Light Circuit (PLC) splitter is an important passive component in advanced fiber optic networks, which uses planar silica waveguide to split a strand of optical signal to two or more strands of optical signals. PLC splitter contains no electronics and uses no power, thus can provide affordable and reliable light distribution solutions. This simple component is widely used in technologies like BPON, GPON, EPON, 10G EPON, 10G GPON, etc. It is a key component in FTTH project where PLC splitter allows a single network interface to be shared by many subscribers.
PLC splitters can be divided into various types according to their split ratios. The most commonly used are PLC splitter with split ratios of 1:8, 1:16, 1:32, 1:64, 2:8, 2:16, 2:32 and 2:64. However, to fit different environments, PLC splitter are manufactured in a variety of package form factors. This tutorial will introduce the most commonly used PLC splitters according to their package form factors.
Bare Fiber PLC Splitter and Blockless PLC Splitter
Bare PLC splitters and blockless PLC splitters have the lowest space requirements among all the PLC fiber splitters. The above picture shows a 1:8 bare fiber PLC splitter on the left and a 1:8 blockless PLC one the right. A bare fiber PLC splitter can be spliced with other optical fibers and be easily installed in a fiber splicing closure or joint boxes for space saving. A bare fiber PLC splitter is simple. And there is no special design of a bare fiber splitter. A blockless PLC splitter is somewhat like a bare fiber PLC splitter but it uses compact stainless tube package and each fiber end is terminated with a fiber optic connector. Some bare fiber PLC splitter also use stainless steel tubes.
Fanout PLC Splitter
A fanout PLC splitter is designated for flexible cable management in limited space, which usually uses 0.9mm buffer optical fibers on both the distribution ends and inbound fiber ends. A length of bare ribbon fiber is added in a PLC splitter with one end terminated with a fanout kit and one end connected to a planar silica waveguide. The above picture shows the details of a 1:8 fanout PLC splitter terminated with SC/APC connectors. Fanout PLC splitter features with low space requirement, low PDL, low excess loss, low insertion loss, which can be installed in a variety of places and enclosures.
ABS PLC splitter
ABS PLC splitter, as shown in the above picture, uses ABS plastic box to protect the silica waveguide components and arranges the inbound fibers and distribution fibers on the same plate. With the strong protection of ABS box and flexible cables extended from the box, ABS PLC splitters can meet the requirement of many installation environments. Configurations of ABS PLC splitters are various according to the split ratios, cable length, connector type. Customer can design specific ABS PLC splitters in Gelink according to the applications.
LGX Box PLC Splitter
LGX box PLC splitter, also known as LGX PLC splitter or LGX splitter. The whole body of a LGX PLC splitter is housed in a strong metal box which can be used alone or be easily installed in standard fiber patch panel or fiber patch enclosure (shown in the above picture). Fiber adapters are pre-terminated on the LGX box for fast and reliable connecting with subscribers or other devices. Multiple choices of adapters on the LGX PLC splitters are available in Gelink. Now LGX splitter has become a more and more popular choice for FTTx projects.
Mini Plug-in Type PLC Splitter
Mini plug-in PLC type splittter has a compact design. It looks like a small version of LGX splitter. Generally, mini plug-in PLC splitter is usually installed in FTTH box for fiber optic signal distribution. The above picture shows the most common application of a 1:8 mini plug-in type PLC splitter. It is installed in a wall mount FTTH distribution box. An Input fiber pigtail and an output fiber pigtail can be used to connect the input and output ports separately. Mini plug-in PLC splitter saves time and provides reliable protection for the fiber optic splitter.
Tray Type PLC Splitter
A tray type PLC splitter can be regarded a rack mountable enclosure which contains the PLC fiber splitter inside a enclosure as shown in the above picture and can be installed in optical fiber distribution box or optical distribution frame (ODF) directly. Generally, a PLC splitter tray adopts 19-inch design in accordance with international standards. They are ideal solutions for splitting at the places that are near OLT (optical line terminal) or ONU (optical network unit).
Rack Mount PLC Splitter
Rack mount PLC splitter uses the international standard 19-inch rack unit design to housing the PLC fiber splitter inside a rack unit. The rack mount design is ideal for high density cabling environments like data centers. Rack mount PLC splitter can be easily deployed on racks and provides clear port identity. More distribution ports can be added with rack mount PLC splitter without worrying about the fiber cabling and faults caused by disconnecting.
Gelink PLC Splitter Solution
PLC splitter is a flexible and low-cost passive optical component in FTTx projects. As the deployment environments of PLC splitters are various. The package form factors and split ratios of PLC splitters also come in a variety of types. Gelink provide full series of PLC fiber splitters and FTTH splitters solutions. Also customized PLC splitters for different environments and applications are also available here. Kindly visit our FTTH Indoor/Outdoor Splitter Terminal Solution page for more details.sales@gelink.com.cn