Graded plastic optical element and method for producing thereof

A method for forming a transparent fiber having a graded-refractive index, said method comprising the steps of:

• providing a tube of an amorphous fluoropolymer having a first index of refraction, said tube having a longitudinal axis and a radial axis and having a bore extending along said longitudinal axis, said bore having an opening at an end thereof,
• filling said bore, subsequent to said step of providing a tube, with a liquid dopant material having a second index of refraction different from said first index of refraction to form a raw preform, and
• heating said raw preform at a selected temperature and for a sufficient duration to provide diffusion of said dopant material in the direction of said radial axis to form a selected graded refractive index, said heating further providing a sufficient flux of said fluoropolymer into said filled bore to fuse said filled bore and form a transparent element having a core with said graded refractive index, and
• drawing said transparent element to form a transparent fiber having said graded refractive index.

A method of forming a graded-refractive index optical fiber, said method comprising the steps of:

• extruding an amorphous fluoropolymer having a first index of refraction to form a preform having a longitudinal axis and a radial axis and having a bore extending along the longitudinal axis, said bore having an opening at an end thereof,
• filling said bore, subsequent to said extruding step, with a liquid dopant material having a second index of refraction different from said first index of refraction to form a raw preform,
• heating said raw preform at a selected temperature and for a sufficient duration to provide diffusion of said dopant material in the direction of said radial axis to form a selected graded refractive index, said heating further providing a sufficient flux of said fluoropolymer into said filled bore to fuse said filled bore and form a finished preform having a core with said graded refractive index, and
• drawing said finished preform to form an optical fiber having said graded refractive index.

A method for forming a transparent fiber having a graded-refractive index, said method comprising the step of:

• providing a tube of an amorphous fluoropolymer having a first index of refraction and having substantially no free C—H bonds, said tube having a longitudinal axis and a radial axis and having a bore extending along said longitudinal axis, said bore having an opening at an end thereof,
• filling said bore, subsequent to said step of providing a tube, with a liquid dopant material having a second index of refraction and having substantially no free C-H bonds to form a raw perform,
• heating said raw preform at a selected temperature and for a sufficient duration to provide diffusion of said dopant material in the direction of said radial axis to form a selected graded-refractive index, said heating providing a sufficient flux of said fluoropolymer into said filled bore to fuse said bore and form a finished preform having a core with said graded refractive index, and
• drawing said finished preform to form an optical fiber having said graded refractive index.

A method for forming a transparent optical fiber having a graded-refractive index, said method comprising the steps of:

• providing a tube of an amorphous fluoropolymer having a first index of refraction and having substantially no free C—H bonds, said tube having a longitudinal axis and a radial axis and having a bore extending along said longitudinal axis, said bore having an open ing at an end thereof,
• filling said bore, subsequent to said step of providing a tube, with a liquid dopant material having a second index of refraction different from said first index of refraction and having substantially no free C—H bonds to form a raw preform,
• heating said raw preform at a selected temperature and for a sufficient duration to provide diffusion of said dopant material in the direction of said radial axis to form a selected graded refractive index, said heating further providing a sufficient flux of said fluoropolymer into said filled bore to fuse said filled bore and form a transparent optical element having a core with said graded refractive index, and
• drawing said transparent element optical element to generate an optical fiber capable of multi-modal transmission of optical data.

A method for forming a graded-refractive index optical fiber, said method comprising the steps of

• extruding an amorphous fluoropolymer having a first index of refraction and having substantially no free C—H bonds to form a preform having a longitudinal axis and a radial axis and having a bore extending along the longitudinal axis, said bore having an opening at an end thereof,
• filling said bore, subsequent to said extruding step, with a liquid dopant material having a second index of refraction different from said first index of refraction and having substantially no free C—H bonds to form a raw preform,
• heating said raw preform at a selected temperature and for a sufficient duration to provide diffusion of said dopant material in the direction of said radial axis to form a selected refractive index, said heating further providing a sufficient flux of said fluoropolymer into said filled bore to fuse said filled bore and form a finished preform having a core with said graded refractive index, and
• drawing said finished preform to form an optical fiber having said graded refractive index.