Cables made from brittle materials like glass require new techniques of end preparation for the purpose of splicing, especially if such splices are to be made in the field. We report here on a method of breaking fibers in a way which invariably produces flat and perpendicular end faces. We explain the underlying theory and derive optimal parameters that permit the design of a simple breaking tool. Experiments with a tool of this kind show that the tolerances for successful fracture are not critical. Laboratory splices of multimode fibers prepared by this method exhibited losses of less than 1 percent (0.04 dB) when joined in index‐matching fluid.

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A method of making low-loss splices in silica fibers by fusing them together with the heat from an electric arc has been developed. Accurate alignment is obtained by the use of a vacuum chuck. Step-index fibers with core diameter of 75 microm and o.d. of 125 microm were spliced, with individual splice losses as low as 0.03 dB and with an average loss in forty-five splices of 0.14 dB. The splices can be made quickly and easily and add no bulk.

We describe a reliable method of preparing planar fiber tape ends by fiber fracture. Using this technique, with suitable precautions to preserve cleanliness during splice preparation, we have measured a splice loss of less than 0.26 dB in 99 percent of all attempts.

This paper describes a method of thermally fusing clad glass fibers, end to end, to obtain a good mechanical joint with low transmission loss. Methods of preparing fiber ends and aligning them for joining are discussed. Two sizes of fibers were joined (10.8–μm core and 20–μm core clad fibers with outside diameters of 75 μm and 150 μm respectively).*