US3826560A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Method of forming a light focusing fiber waveguide
Assignee: Corning Glass Works
•
Filing: 1972-03-30
•
Granted: 1974-07-30
•
Expires: 1992-03-30
Abstract
Abstract A method of forming an article such as a light focusing fiber waveguide by applying to a substantially cylindrical starting member a layer of soot having a radially varying composition by means of flame hydrolysis. The starting member is removed and the resulting substantially cylindrical hollow cylinder is heated and drawn to reduce the cross-sectional area and to collapse the hole to form a fiber having a solid cross-sectional area with a radially varying composition.
Inventors
- 👤 P Schultz
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-23 19:15
CPC Classifications
G; G02; G02B; G02B6/00; G02B6/02; G02B6/028; G02B6/0281; C; C03; C03B; C03B37/00; C03B37/01; C03B37/012; C03B37/014; C03B37/01413; C03B37/01446; C03B37/01466; C03B37/01473; C03B37/02; C03B37/025; C03B37/027; C03B2201/00; C03B2201/06; C03B2201/30; C03B2201/31; C03B2201/32; C03B2201/34; C03B2201/40; C03B2201/42; C03B2203/00; C03B2203/10; C03B2203/22; C03B2203/26; C03B2205/00; C03B2205/12; C03B2205/16; C03B2207/00; C03B2207/80; C03B2207/85; C03B2207/86
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 21
Claim 1
Independent Claim
117 words
A method of forming an article having a continually varying or gradient chemical composition comprising the steps of providing a substantially cylindrical starting member, rotating said member about the longitudinal axis thereof, entraining in a gaseous medium predetermined amounts of each of a plurality of constituents in vapor form, hydrolyzing said vaPors in a flame to form a soot having a predetermined composition, applying said soot to the exterior peripheral surface of said member, and continually varying the amount of vapor entrained in said gaseous medium of at least one of said constituents in a predetermined desired manner, whereby one layer of said soot is built up on said member having a substantially continually radially varying composition.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
117 words
A method of forming an article having a continually varying or gradient chemical composition comprising the steps of providing a substantially cylindrical starting member, rotating said member about the longitudinal axis thereof, entraining in a gaseous medium predetermined amounts of each of a plurality of constituents in vapor form, hydrolyzing said vaPors in a flame to form a soot having a predetermined composition, applying said soot to the exterior peripheral surface of said member, and continually varying the amount of vapor entrained in said gaseous medium of at least one of said constituents in a predetermined desired manner, whereby one layer of said soot is built up on said member having a substantially continually radially varying composition.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
13 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said article is a right circular cylinder.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
73 words
The method of claim 2 wherein said article is transparent and the radially varying composition provides a radially varying index of refraction in accordance with the equation nr no sech pi r/2F where no is the index of refraction at the center of said article, nr is the index of refraction at any point at a distance r from the center of said article, and F is the focal length of said article.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
28 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of removing said starting member by drilling, mechanically polishing the drilled surface, and flame polishing the mechanically polished surface.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 4 further comprising the step of hydrofluoric acid washing of said drilled surfaces following each polishing step.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
43 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said soot is fused silica at least initially doped with at least one material selected from the group consisting of titanium oxide, tantalum oxide, tin oxide, niobium oxide, zirconium oxide, aluminum oxide, lanthanum oxide, and germanium oxide.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 6 wherein said soot is doped with not more than 25 percent by weight titanium oxide at the center thereof.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
58 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of removing said cylindrical starting member, heating the structure so formed to the drawing temperature of the materials thereof, and drawing the heated structure to reduce the cross-sectional area thereof and to collapse the hole resulting from removing said starting member to form a fiber having a solid cross-section.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
10 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising sintering said soot.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 9 further comprising the step of removing said starting member.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
38 words
The method of claim 10 further comprising the steps of drawing said structure to reduce the cross-sectional area thereof and to collapse the hole remaining from removing said starting member to form a fiber having a solid cross-section.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
18 words
The method of claim 11 wherein the sintering and drawing steps are accomplished during the same heating operation.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
15 words
The method of claim 12 wherein said drawing is performed in a substantially oxygen atmosphere.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said article is a light focusing fiber waveguide.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
17 words
The method of claim 14 wherein said soot is fused silica that is at least initially doped.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
15 words
The method of claim 15 further comprising the step of removing said cylindrical starting member.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
53 words
The method of claim 16 further comprising the steps of heating the structure so formed to the drawing temperature of the materials thereof, and drawing the heated structure to reduce the cross-sectional area thereof and to collapse the hole resulting from removing said starting member to form a fiber having a solid cross-section.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
18 words
The method of claim 17 further comprising the step of sintering said structure prior to the drawing step.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
73 words
The method of claim 18 wherein said waveguide is transparent and the radially varying composition provides a radially varying index of refraction in accordance with the equation nr no sech pi r/2F where no is the index of refraction at the center of said waveguide, nr is the index of refraction at any point at a distance r from the center of the waveguide, and F is the focal length of said waveguide.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
12 words
A light focusing fiber Waveguide formed by the method of claim 1.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1977-07-29 | 1978-01-28 | 1978-07-30 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1981-07-29 | 1982-01-28 | 1982-07-30 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1985-07-29 | 1986-01-28 | 1986-07-30 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |