Optical fibre connector

A method of connecting two optical fibres end to end using two optical fibre connector components each of the kind including an elongate tubular housing, at least three elongate members of substantially the same cross-sectional shape and size as one another supported longitudinally side by side within the tubular housing and having adjacent arcuate surfaces which bound between them an intersticial space into which an end part of an optical fibre can be inserted and, associated with the elongate members, means for compressing the elongate members about the optical fibre to align the optical fibre along and secure it in the intersticial space, each tubular housing of the optical fibre connector component being of a metal or metal alloy having a substantially greater coefficient of thermal expansion than that of the material of the elongate members in the tubular housing, which method comprises the steps of heating each tubular housing to a temperature sufficient to cause the housing to expand radially outwardly to permit radial separation of the elongate members and so facilitate insertion of an optical fibre into an end of the interstitial space bounded by the elongate members, introducing an optical fibre into the interstitial space of each heated tubular housing, cooling the tubular housing or permitting the tubular housing to cool to cause the housing to contract radially inwardly to compress the elongate members inwardly and cause them to grip the optical fibre in such a way that it is aligned substantially axially in the interstitial space, inserting the optical fibre connector components into opposite ends of the bore of a tubular body;

• and urging the connector components axially towards one another until said optical fibres therein substantially abut.