TWI411823B - Selective injection method and architecture of microstructured optical fiber - Google Patents

Abstract

Selective injection method of microstructured optical fiber comprises the steps of providing a microstructured optical fiber having an end face, at least one first micro pore area disposed on the end face and at least one second micro pore area disposed on the end face, wherein the first micro pore area and the second micro pore area have at least one micro pore respectively; providing a solid fiber having an end part; performing a gluing step of adhering a glue to the end part of the solid fiber; performing a glue dispensing step of adhering the glue to the first micro pore area of the microstructured optical fiber via the end part of the solid fiber; performing a first glue hardening step of solidifying the glue to seal the micro pore of the first micro pore area; and performing a medium injection step of immerging the end face of the microstructured optical fiber into a medium to enable the medium to inject into the micro pore of the second micro pore area.

Description

Method and structure for selectively injecting medium into microstructured fiber

The invention relates to a method and a structure for injecting medium of a microstructured optical fiber, in particular to a method and a structure for fabricating a micro-structured fiber selective injection medium by using a solid optical fiber in a positional dispensing manner.

At present, there are two main methods of liquid perfusion of microstructured fibers. The first method is to fabricate micropores of different sizes by using microstructured fibers, and to control the different characteristics of the pores of different sizes of micropores by using UV glue, and to control the injection of different sizes of UV glue. The depth of the micropores, and the UV glue in the micropores is cured by UV irradiation, and can be selected according to the length of the optical fiber to determine the clogging of the larger micropores or the smaller micropores to achieve selective microporous liquid injection, however, This method is only suitable for selective liquid injection of microstructured fibers with micropores of different sizes, and is not applicable to microstructured fibers having micropores of the same size; the second method is to melt the microstructure by using a fusion splicer. By appropriate fire control, the micropores of the outer shell of the microstructured fiber are tightly closed, while the micropores of the inner core portion are kept open, so that the liquid can be controlled to be injected only into the inner core portion (core) Micropores, in order to achieve selective microporous liquid injection, however, this method can only be used for microporous liquid injection of fiber core or shell for microfibers of hollow core, for other differences The pore distribution of the injection liquid does not apply, the use is very limited.

A primary object of the present invention is to provide a method of selectively implanting a microstructured fiber, comprising providing a microstructured fiber, the microstructure The optical fiber system has an end surface and at least one first micropore region and at least one second micropore region respectively disposed on the end surface, the first micropore region and the second microwell region respectively having at least one micropore; a solid optical fiber having an end portion; performing a dipping step of dipping the end portion of the solid optical fiber with a colloid; and performing a one-step gel step by the end portion of the solid optical fiber The colloid is adhered to the first microporous region of the microstructured fiber; a first curing step is performed to cure the colloid to seal the micropores in the first microporous region; and a dielectric implantation step is performed And immersing the end surface of the microstructured fiber in a medium to inject the medium into the micropore of the second microporous region, and the present invention utilizes the end portion of the solid optical fiber in a punctuated manner Selectively sealing the micropores of the first microporous region of the microstructured fiber, and then selectively injecting the medium into the micropores of the second microporous region. The present invention is applicable to micropores having the same size. Microstructured fiber, also available in different sizes The micro-structured fiber of the hole, in addition, the present invention can also achieve selective injection of the medium for the micro-holes which are distributed in a dot shape, a linear distribution and a planar distribution, and the invention can greatly simplify the medium injection process and reduce the production efficiency. cost.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a microstructured optical fiber structure having an end surface, a colloid, and at least a first micropore region and at least a second micropore region respectively disposed on the end surface, the first micro The pore region and the second microwell region each have at least one microwell, and the gel system seals the microwell of the first microwell region.

Please refer to Figures 1 and 2A to 2H, which are the first preferred embodiment of the present invention. A method for selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured fiber is described in detail as follows: First, referring to steps (a0) and 2A of FIG. 1, a microstructured fiber 10 is provided, and the microstructured fiber 10 is provided. The first micropore region 11 and the second micropore region 12 have at least one end face 10a and at least one first micropore region 11 and at least one second micropore region 12 respectively disposed on the end face 10a. The micro holes 11a, 12a, in the embodiment, the micro holes 11a of the first micro hole region 11 and the micro holes 12a of the second micro hole region 12 have the same size; then, refer to FIG. Steps (a1), 2B and 3, providing a solid optical fiber 20 having an end portion 21 which may be in the shape of a flat cone or a cone, in this embodiment, the end portion The 21 series has a flat taper shape, and the end portion 21 has a top tapered surface 21a which may have a circular shape, a hexagonal shape, a rectangular shape or other geometric shapes. In this embodiment, the top cone The surface 21a has a circular shape, and the top tapered surface 21a is formed by grinding. Preferably, the area of the top tapered surface 21a is not less than the micro The area of the hole 11a and the area of the micro hole 12a, or 'in another embodiment, when the end portion 21 of the solid fiber 20 has a conical shape, the end portion 21 may have a smaller diameter than the micro hole 11a. The diameter and the diameter of the micro-hole 12a; after that, referring to the steps (a2) and 2C of FIG. 1, a dipping step is performed by dipping the end portion 21 of the solid optical fiber 20 with a colloid 30. The colloid 30 can be a UV glue or a thermosetting glue. In the embodiment, the glue 30 is a UV glue, and preferably, the glue 30 is adhered to the top surface 21a of the end portion 21. Or, in another embodiment, when the end portion 21 of the solid optical fiber 20 has a conical shape, the colloid 30 can be formed into a spherical shape when being adhered to the end portion 21; In the steps (a3) and 2D and 2E of FIG. 1, a one-step gel step is performed by adhering the colloid 30 to the first micro of the microstructured optical fiber 10 by the end portion 21 of the solid optical fiber 20. The micro-hole 11a of the hole area 11; afterwards, referring to the steps (a4), 2F and 4 of FIG. 1, a first curing step is performed, which cures the colloid 30 to seal the first micro-hole. The micro-hole 11a of the region 11; finally, referring to the steps (a5), 2G, 2H and 5 of FIG. 1, a dielectric implantation step is performed by immersing the end surface 10a of the microstructured optical fiber 10 in a medium 40. The medium 40 is injected into the micropore 12a of the second micropore region 12, and in the embodiment, the medium 40 is a liquid, and further, after the dielectric implantation step is completed, an optical fiber may be further included. A cutting step is performed to cut the portion of the microstructured fiber 10 having the colloid 30 to complete the process of selectively implanting the microstructured fiber 10 into the medium.

Referring to FIG. 2H, the microstructured optical fiber structure according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention has an end surface 10a, a colloid 30, a medium 40, and at least one of the end faces 10a respectively. a microporous region 11 and at least one second microwell region 12, the first microporous region 11 and the second microwell region 12 respectively having at least one microhole 11a, 12a, the colloid 30 sealing the first micro The microwell 12a of the hole region 11 is injected into the microwell 12a of the second microwell region 12.

Please refer to FIGS. 6 and 7A to 7M, which are a second preferred embodiment of the present invention, a method for selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured fiber, and steps (b0) to (b5) of the embodiment are basically the same as Step (a0) to step (a5) of a preferred embodiment are the same, except that the colloid 30 and the medium 40 used in the embodiment are respectively high-viscosity colloid and low-viscosity glue. In addition, in the embodiment, since the medium 40 is a low-viscosity colloid, the injection length of the low-viscosity colloid (medium 40) can be controlled by the length of the injection time. Further, refer to the steps of FIG. (b6), 7I and 8 , after completing the dielectric implantation step, may further comprise performing a second curing step of curing the low viscosity colloid (medium 40) to seal the second microporous region 12 The micro-hole 12a; then, referring to the steps (b7) and 7J and 9 of FIG. 6, after completing the second curing step, the method further comprises performing a first fiber cutting step, which is to cut the The microstructured fiber 10 has a portion of the high viscosity colloid (colloid 30) to expose the microhole 11a of the first microporous region 11, in this step, the microwell 12a of the second microwell region 12 is still Sealed state; afterwards, referring to steps (b8), 7K, 7L and 10 of FIG. 6, after completing the first fiber cutting step, an additional liquid filling step may be further included, which is the microstructured fiber The end surface 10a of the 10 is immersed in a liquid 50 to inject the liquid 50 into the micro-hole 11a of the first micro-hole region 11; Thereafter, referring to steps (b9) and 7M of FIG. 6, after completing the liquid injection step, a second fiber cutting step may be further included, which is to cut the microstructured fiber 10 to have the low viscosity colloid ( Part of the medium 40) to complete the process of selectively injecting the microstructured fiber 10 into the liquid.

In the present invention, the end portion 21 of the solid optical fiber 20 is used to selectively seal the micro-hole 11a of the first micro-hole region 11 of the microstructured optical fiber 10 in a point-by-point manner, and the medium 40 can be selectively injected. In the micropore 12a of the second micropore region 12, the present invention can be applied to microstructured optical fibers having different sizes of micropores, in addition to the microstructured optical fibers having the same size micropores. In addition, the present invention can also achieve selective injection of media for micropores having a dotted distribution, a linear distribution, and a planar distribution, and the present invention can greatly simplify the medium injection process and reduce the manufacturing cost in terms of efficacy.

The scope of the present invention is defined by the scope of the appended claims, and any changes and modifications made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention are within the scope of the present invention. .

10‧‧‧Microstructured fiber

10a‧‧‧ end face

11‧‧‧ first microporous area

11a‧‧‧Micropores

12‧‧‧Second microporous area

12a‧‧‧Micropores

20‧‧‧solid fiber

21‧‧‧ End

21a‧‧‧Top cone

30‧‧‧colloid

40‧‧‧Media

50‧‧‧Liquid

(a0) ‧ ‧ provides a microstructured fiber having an end surface and at least one first micropore region and at least a second micropore region respectively disposed on the end surface, the first micropore region and The second microwell zone has at least one microwell

(a1) ‧‧‧ provides a solid fiber with one end

(a2) ‧ ‧ a glue step in which the end of the solid fiber is coated with a colloid

(a3) ‧ ‧ a one-step gel step by adhering the colloid to the first microporous region of the microstructured fiber by the end of the solid fiber

(a4) ‧‧‧ performing a first curing step of curing the colloid to seal the micropores in the first microporous region

(a5) ‧‧‧ performing a dielectric implantation step of immersing the end surface of the microstructured fiber in a medium to inject the medium into the microvia of the second microporous region

(b0) ‧ ‧ provides a microstructured fiber having an end face and at least one first microwell region and at least a second microwell region respectively disposed on the end face, the first microwell region and The second microwell zone has at least one microwell

(b1) ‧‧‧ provides a solid fiber with one end

(b2) ‧ ‧ a glue step in which the end of the solid fiber is immersed in a (high viscosity) colloid

(b3) ‧ ‧ a one-step gel step by adhering the (high-viscosity) colloid to the first microporous region of the microstructured fiber by the end of the solid fiber

(b4) ‧‧‧ performing a first solidification step of curing the (high viscosity) colloid to seal the micropores in the first microporous region

(b5) ‧‧‧ performing a dielectric implantation step of immersing the end surface of the microstructured fiber in a medium (low viscosity colloid) to inject the medium (low viscosity colloid) into the second micropore region Inside the micropore

(b6) ‧‧‧ performing a second solidification step of curing the low viscosity colloid to seal the micropores in the second microporous region

(b7) ‧ ‧ performing a first fiber dicing step of removing the portion of the microstructured fiber having the high viscosity colloid to reveal the microvia of the first microporous region

(b8) ‧ ‧ performing a liquid injection step of immersing the end surface of the microstructured fiber in a liquid to inject the liquid into the micropores of the first microporous region

(b9) ‧‧‧ performing a second fiber-cutting step of cutting the microstructured fiber to have a portion of the low-viscosity colloid

1 is a flow chart showing the steps of selectively injecting a microstructured fiber into a medium in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.

2A to 2H are views showing a flow chart of a method of selectively injecting a microstructured optical fiber into a medium according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 3 is a photograph of a solid optical fiber in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 4: Photograph of the microstructured fiber after completion of the first curing step in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 5: A cross-sectional view of the microstructured fiber taken along line A-A of Figure 2H.

Figure 6 is a flow chart showing the steps of selectively implanting a microstructured fiber in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

7A to 7M are views showing a flow chart of a method of selectively injecting a microstructured optical fiber into a medium according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view of the microstructured fiber taken along line B-B of Figure 7I.

Figure 9 is a photographic view of the microstructured fiber after the first fiber cutting step is completed in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 10: A cross-sectional view of the microstructured fiber taken along line C-C of Figure 7L.

(a0) ‧ ‧ provides a microstructured fiber having an end surface and at least one first micropore region and at least a second micropore region respectively disposed on the end surface, the first micropore region and The second microwell zone has at least one microwell

(a1) ‧‧‧ provides a solid fiber with one end

(a2) ‧ ‧ a glue step in which the end of the solid fiber is coated with a colloid

(a3) ‧ ‧ a one-step gel step by adhering the colloid to the first microporous region of the microstructured fiber by the end of the solid fiber

(a4) ‧‧‧ performing a first curing step of curing the colloid to seal the micropores in the first microporous region

(a5) ‧‧‧ performing a dielectric implantation step of immersing the end surface of the microstructured fiber in a medium to inject the medium into the microvia of the second microporous region

Claims (12)

A method for selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured fiber, comprising: providing a microstructured fiber having an end surface and at least one first micropore region and at least a second micropore region respectively disposed on the end surface The first microporous region and the second microporous region respectively have at least one microhole; a solid optical fiber is provided, the solid optical fiber has one end portion; and a dipping step is performed, which is the end of the solid optical fiber Dipping a colloid; performing a one-step gel step by adhering the colloid to the first microporous region of the microstructured fiber by the end of the solid fiber; performing a first curing step Curing the colloid to seal the micropores of the first microporous region; and performing a dielectric implantation step of immersing the end surface of the microstructured fiber in a medium to inject the medium into the second microporous region Within the microwell. The method of selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured fiber according to claim 1, wherein the medium is a liquid in the medium injecting step. The method for selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured fiber according to claim 2, after completing the step of injecting the medium, further comprising performing a fiber cutting step of cutting the microstructured fiber to have a portion of the colloid. The method for selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured fiber according to the first aspect of the invention, wherein the micropore of the first micropore region and the second micro The micropores of the pore region have the same size. The method of selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured fiber according to claim 1, wherein the glue system is a high viscosity colloid. The method of selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured fiber according to claim 5, wherein in the medium injecting step, the medium is a low viscosity colloid. The method for selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured optical fiber according to claim 6, wherein the low viscosity adhesive system can be a UV adhesive or a thermosetting adhesive. The method for selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured fiber according to claim 6, after completing the step of injecting the medium, further comprising performing a second curing step of curing the low-viscosity colloid to seal the The micropores of the second microporous region. The method for selectively injecting a medium of a microstructured fiber according to claim 8 , after completing the second step of solidifying, further comprising performing a first fiber cutting step, wherein the removing the microstructured fiber has the a portion of the high viscosity colloid to reveal the micropores in the first microporous region. The method for processing a micro-structured fiber selective injection medium according to claim 9 , after completing the first fiber cutting step, further comprising performing a liquid injection step, wherein the end face of the microstructure fiber is Immersion in a liquid to inject the liquid into the micropores of the first microwell region. Selective note of microstructured fiber as described in claim 10 The method of entering the medium, after completing the liquid filling step, further comprises performing a second fiber cutting step of cutting the microstructured fiber to have a portion of the low viscosity colloid. The method of selectively injecting a medium into a microstructured fiber according to the above aspect of the invention, wherein the end portion of the solid fiber has a top tapered surface, and the top tapered surface may have a circular shape, a hexagonal shape, or a rectangular shape. Or other geometric shapes.