What are Fiber Optic Patch Jumpers and How to Choose Them?

The fiber jumper is also known as fiber patch cord and it is a length of fiber cable which is fitted with LC, SC, MTRJ, or ST connectors at the each end. The LC, which is a smaller form factor connector, happens to be the most used option.

Fiber optic patch jumpers are also available in hybrid varieties with two different types of connectors at both ends. The jumpers are used the same way as patch cords for connecting end device or network hardware and restructured cabling system. You can find and buy fiber optic patch cables as well as fiber optic patch leads from any reputed manufacturer. These days most of the manufacturers also sell online.

The fiber optic patch jumpers are made in single mode and multimode and you can choose them to match the structured cabling system. Then there are mode conditioning patch cords as well which are required when transmitting gigabit signals over 200m on 62.5 micron multimode fiber.

Here’s a look at some points to consider when choosing fiber optic jumper:

1. The connector type

The first thing to look for in a fiber optic jumper is the connector. It is terminated on both ends with a fiber optic connector such as LC, SC, ST, FC, or MPO/ MTP connector. The different types of connectors are built in for plugging in different devices. If the ports of devices are same at both ends, a cable with same type of connectors can be used.

2. Connector polish type

Apart from choosing the right connector type, the next thing to look for is the connector polish type. You need to decide if you need same polish type of same connector type of different polish types of different connector types on both ends such as SC APC fiber patch cord, SC/ APC to LC patch cable. The loss of APC connectors is lower than UPC connectors. It has been observed that the performance of APC connectors is better than UPC connectors. The APC connectors is used in wide array of applications such as FTTx, passive optical network PON and wavelength- division multiplexing WDM that are more sensitive to return loss. However, you must know that the APC connector is more expensive than UPC connector. With those applications that need high precision, the APC should be your first choice.

3. Single mode or multimode cable type

The fiber optic patch cable has two propagation modes- multi-mode and single-mode. The single mode is designed for transmission of single ray or mode of light as a carrier and is used for long-distance signal transmission. The multimode fiber patch cord can carry multiple light rays or modes, each at a slightly different reflection angle within the optical fiber core. The multimode fiber optic patch cables are used relatively for shorter distances as the modes tend to disperse over longer lengths. A typical single-mode fiber optic patch cable used yellow cable and the multimode fiber optic patch cable used orange or aqua fiber cable. Explore the web for more information and suggestions on how to buy the best quality fiber optic patch leads from all the options available online.

Chen Dayu works with a leading electrical manufacturing company which is also known as a reliable fiber optic patch cord supplier. He is keen writer and loves to write about tips and strategies that can help small and medium businesses.