While the aerospace industry is looking to replace copper connectors with fiber optics, the harsh environments are challenging to the integrity of polished glass fibers. Dust and vibration near the optical interface can lead to performance degradation and failure.
The PRO Beam EB16 Terminus is an optical non-contact terminus with an external design that conforms to the size 16 dimensional envelope of this standard. It uses the expanded beam (EB) concept, which includes a beam expansion/contraction between emitting and receiving fibers. A lens on the launch side of the EB connection contains a spherical ball lens to expand and collimate the beam. There is no physical contact between the sensitive optical elements, which makes the concept practically immune to the effects of vibration and shocks, TE Connectivity says. The rear EB16 pin and socket terminus is removable and can be mounted as a replacement for physical contact or size 16 copper contacts.
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