A method for producing a protected optical fiber with distributed sensors includes heating an optical fiber preform and drawing the heated optical fiber preform to form a drawn optical fiber. The method also includes coating the drawn optical fiber with a carbon coating after the optical fiber is drawn to provide a carbon coated optical fiber and then writing a series of fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) into the carbon coated optical fiber to provide a carbon coated optical fiber with FBGs. The method further includes coating the carbon coated optical fiber with FBGs with one or more layers of a polymer to provide the protected optical fiber with distributed sensors, wherein the heating, drawing, carbon coating the drawn optical fiber, writing, coating the carbon coated optical fiber are performed in that sequence while the protected optical fiber is being produced.

A waveguide for high efficiency transmission of high energy light useful in ablation procedures at predetermined bandwidths over predetermined distances comprising: an optical fiber core; a silanization agent; layered cladding surrounding the optical fiber core comprising: a first thin metal layer comprising at least two types of metals the first thin metal layer covalently bonded to the core and a second thin metal layer bonded to the second metal layer, and a catalyst component; wherein the silanization agent comprising organofunctional alkoxysilane molecule, such as 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTS), is a self supporting bridge between the surface of the optical fiber and the first metal layer; the first metal layer is uniformly chemisorbed onto the surface of the optical fiber by means of covalent SiOSi bonds with the optical fiber; further wherein the catalyst component derived from an activation solution for enhancing the layered cladding upon the optical fiber.

An optical fiber with a double-clad fluoride with low loss and high pump absorption efficiency, and its preparation method are provided. The gain optical fiber with the double-clad fluoride includes a fiber core, a D-shaped inner cladding, an outer cladding, and a polymer coating, wherein the fiber core, the inner cladding, and the outer cladding are all fluoride glass materials, and the polymer coating is a fluorinated ethylene propylene copolymer. The fiber core and inner cladding structure are prepared by a suction injection method, and the inner cladding is polished into a D-shaped structure, and the outer cladding is prepared by a core insertion casting method to form an optical fiber preform with D-shaped double-clad fluoride and draw an optical fiber.

Embodiments are directed to systems and methods for material processing in a low gravity environment, and an optical fiber formed in a low gravity environment. In at least one embodiment, a glass part (e.g., a preform, optical fiber, optical waveguide, etc.) is produced by printing one or more glass materials using nozzles fed by heated apparatuses (e.g., syringes or crucibles).

A fibre comprising a core made of a fiberisable material and having an outer surface is described. the fibre further includes an external coating including a mixture of hexagonal boron nitride and bentonite, in a proportion of at least 10% by weight of bentonite relative to the total weight of the external coating. An optical component comprising one or more of the optical fibre is also described, along with a method for manufacturing a pasty composition for a fibre coating.