Method and apparatus for improved fiber optic light management

A method for coating optical fibers, comprising the steps of:

• attaching at least one optical fiber segment to a slab of optical material so as to create a unit,
• placing the unit within a thin-film deposition chamber with an exposed end face of the optical fiber segment to receive deposition of a filter material, wherein at least one thin-film layer of optical material is deposited onto the unit,
• providing an orientation of the unit within the chamber such that material deposition on an exposed region of the slab tracks deposition of the filter material on the optical fiber segment,
• obtaining optical monitoring information by optically monitoring the slab region so as to infer the accumulation of the filter material on the optical fiber segment, and
• using the optical monitoring information as feedback to actively guide adjustment of the deposition of filter material.

A method of depositing a thin film coating onto an end face of an optical fiber comprising the steps of:

• placing the optical fiber and a witness into a deposition chamber with an exposed end face positioned to received deposition,
• depositing coating material on the exposed end face,
• collecting information by optically monitoring the buildup of coating material onto the witness,
• adjusting controls of the deposition chamber in response to the collected information while the optical fiber is in the deposition chamber.