Fusion Splice vs. Mechanical Splice
When talking about fiber optic splicing, there are two methods of splicing that can be selected. One is fusion splicing, and the other is mechanical splicing. If you are just beginning to splice fiber, you might want to look at your long-term goals in this field in order to choose which technique best fits your economic and performance objectives. This tutorial will talk about these two methods respectively and then have a comparison between the two. Definition of Fusion Splice and Mechanical Splice Both fusion and mechanical splicing accomplish the same thing—they bring two optical fibers together and hold them that way so that an optical signal can pass through the join. More detailedly, fusion splice is a junction of two or more optical fibers that have been melted together. This is accomplished with a machine called fusion splicer that performs two basic functions: aligning of the fibers and melting them together, typically using an electric arc. Mechanical splices are simpl...