What are the differences between FBT fiber splitter and PLC fiber splitter?

Optical fiber splitters play an increasingly important role in today’s optical networks. From the FTTx system to the traditional optical network, it can not only enable many users to share an optical fiber interface, but also can help users extend the function of optical network circuits. Today we’ll give you a brief introduction to fiber splitter.

With the continuous development of modern technology, a variety of optical fiber splitters appear on the market.
The two most common types: FBT fiber splitter and PLC fiber splitter
In addition to the size and appearance of the difference, there are many differences in other places.

1. Material
FBT optical fiber splitter is made of steel, optical fiber, heat shrinkable tube and other common materials. Because the cost of these materials is not high, device manufacturing technology is relatively simple, so the price of FBT fiber splitter is cheaper. And the technology of PLC fiber splitter is more complicated and expensive. It uses semiconductor technology for production, greatly increasing the manufacturing difficulty, so its cost is higher.
2. Working wavelength
The FBT fiber splitter supports only three wavelengths: 850nm, 1310nm and 1550nm, can not work in other wavelength environments.
The PLC fiber splitter can support the operation at 1260nm to 1650nm wavelength. It can be seen that the wavelength range of the PLC fiber splitter is wider.
3. Split ratio
The split ratio of the FBT fiber splitter is as high as 1:32, while PLC fiber splitter can rise to 64, this makes PLC fiber splitter to provide higher reliability. n addition, based on the higher technology, the PLC fiber splitter can split the signal equally.
4. Temperature
Temperature is the key factor affecting the performance of optical devices. Therefore, good temperature stability plays a vital role in the equipment performance. The FBT fiber splitter can work stably at -5℃～75℃, while PLC fiber splitter can work in a wider temperature range from -40℃～85℃, excellent performance can be achieved in such extreme environments.
In addition to the above differences, there are other differences between them.For example, compared with FBT fiber splitter, the size of PLC fiber splitter is more compact. Therefore, PLC fiber splitter is more suitable for high-density applications.
Hope that the above introduction of FBT fiber splitter and PLC fiber splitter will help you better understand the fiber splitter, and help you to choose the suitable fiber splitter!