Process Date: September 2001

Optical fiber stripped using a 25W  Synrad CO2 laser. 
For many material removal processes, such as fiber optic stripping, low power CO2 lasers can be an excellent tool.  The laser beam  can be positioned with high accuracy and power delivered with precise control to remove unwanted materials. 

In the photographs above, the acrylate coating on a single mode optical fiber was removed using a 25W  Synrad Fenix laser with a 80 mm lens.  These results were achieved with 4 passes of the laser beam at 200 inches per second mirror speed, with a cycle time of 5 seconds.  The optical fiber was then cleaned with alcohol.