IEC 60793-2-50:2012

IEC 60793-2-50
®

Edition 4.0 2012-12
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside


Optical fibres –
Part 2-50: Product specifications – Sectional specification for class B single-
mode fibres

Fibres optiques –
Partie 2-50: Spécifications de produits – Spécification intermédiaire pour les
fibres unimodales de classe B

IEC 60793-2-50:2012

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IEC 60793-2-50

®


Edition 4.0 2012-12




INTERNATIONAL



STANDARD




NORME



INTERNATIONALE
colour

inside










Optical fibres –

Part 2-50: Product specifications – Sectional specification for class B single-

mode fibres




Fibres optiques –

Partie 2-50: Spécifications de produits – Spécification intermédiaire pour les


fibres unimodales de classe B














INTERNATIONAL

ELECTROTECHNICAL

COMMISSION


COMMISSION

ELECTROTECHNIQUE

PRICE CODE
INTERNATIONALE

CODE PRIX W


ICS 33.180.10 ISBN 978-2-83220-545-7



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® Registered trademark of the International Electrotechnical Commission
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– 2 – 60793-2-50  IEC:2012
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 4
1 Scope . 6
2 Normative references . 6
3 Terms and definitions . 7
4 Abbreviations and symbols . 7
5 Specifications . 8
5.1 General . 8
5.2 Dimensional requirements . 8
5.3 Mechanical requirements . 9
5.4 Transmission requirements. 10
5.5 Environmental requirements . 11
5.5.1 General . 11
5.5.2 Optical environmental requirements – Attenuation . 12
5.5.3 Mechanical environmental requirements . 12
Annex A (normative) Family specification for category B1.1 single-mode fibres . 14
Annex B (normative) Family specification for category B1.2 single-mode fibres . 16
Annex C (normative) Family specification for category B1.3 single-mode fibres . 18
Annex D (normative) Family specification for category B2 single-mode fibres . 21
Annex E (normative) Family specification for category B4 single-mode fibres . 24
Annex F (normative) Family specification for category B5 single-mode fibres . 27
Annex G (normative) Family specification for category B6 single-mode fibres . 30
Annex H (informative) System design information for category B4 single-mode fibres . 33
Annex I (informative) Map from IEC nomenclature to ITU-T recommendations . 36
Bibliography . 37

Figure H.1 – Sub-category B4_d chromatic dispersion coefficient limits . 34
Figure H.2 – Sub-category B4_e chromatic dispersion coefficient limits . 35

Table 1 – Dimensional attributes and measurement methods . 8
Table 2 – Requirements common to all category B fibres . 9
Table 3 – Mechanical attributes and test methods . 9
Table 4 – Requirements common to all category B fibres . 10
Table 5 – Transmission attributes and measurement methods . 10
Table 6 – Requirements common to all category B fibres . 11
Table 7 – Additional attributes required in the family specifications . 11
Table 8 – Environmental exposure tests . 11
Table 9 – Attributes measured . 11
Table 10 – Change in attenuation for environmental tests . 12
Table 11 – Coating strip force for environmental tests . 12
Table 12 – Tensile strength for environmental tests . 13
Table 13 – Stress corrosion susceptibility for environmental tests . 13
Table A.1 – Dimensional requirements specific to category B1.1 fibres . 14

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60793-2-50  IEC:2012 – 3 –
Table A.2 – Mechanical requirements specific to category B1.1 fibres . 14
Table A.3 – Transmission requirements specific to category B1.1 fibres . 15
Table B.1 – Dimensional requirements specific to category B1.2 fibres . 16
Table B.2 – Mechanical requirements specific to category B1.2 fibres . 16
Table B.3 – Transmission requirements specific to category B1.2 fibres . 17
Table C.1 – Dimensional requirements specific to category B1.3 fibres . 18
Table C.2 – Mechanical requirements specific to category B1.3 fibres . 18
Table C.3 – Transmission requirements specific to category B1.3 fibres . 19
Table D.1 – Dimensional requirements specific to category B2 fibres . 21
Table D.2 – Mechanical requirements specific to category B2 fibres . 22
Table D.3 – Transmission requirements specific to category B2 fibres . 22
Table E.1 – Dimensional requirements specific to category B4 fibres . 24
Table E.2 – Mechanical requirements specific to category B4 fibres . 25
Table E.3 – Transmission requirements specific to category B4 fibres . 25
Table F.1 – Dimensional requirements specific to category B5 fibres . 27
Table F.2 – Mechanical requirements specific to category B5 fibres . 28
Table F.3 – Transmission requirements specific to category B5 fibres . 28
Table G.1 – Dimensional requirements specific to category B6 fibres . 30
Table G.2 – Mechanical requirements specific to category B6 fibres . 31
Table G.3 – Transmission requirements specific to category B6 fibres . 31
Table H.1 – Examples for λ = 1 530 nm and λ = 1 565 nm . 33
min max
Table I.1 – Map of IEC to ITU . 36

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– 4 – 60793-2-50  IEC:2012
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________

OPTICAL FIBRES –

Part 2-50: Product specifications –
Sectional specification for class B single-mode fibres

FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC
Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC itself does not provide any attestation of conformity. Independent certification bodies provide conformity
assessment services and, in some areas, access to IEC marks of conformity. IEC is not responsible for any
services carried out by independent certification bodies.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or
other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, or for costs (including legal fees) and
expenses arising out of the publication, use of, or reliance upon, this IEC Publication or any other IEC
Publications.
8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.
9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
International Standard IEC 60793-2-50 has been prepared by subcommittee 86A: Fibres and
cables, of IEC technical committee 86: Fibre optics.
This fourth edition cancels and replaces the third edition, published in 2008, and constitutes a
technical revision.
This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous
edition:
– aligns the requirements with the relevant ITU-T Recommendations;
– adds another option to the list of alternative primary coating diameter constructions in
Table 2 and subsequent family specifications; related modification of coating strip force in
Tables 4 and 11;
– removes the jumper cut-off wavelength in Table 5;
– modifies B6 sub-categories;

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60793-2-50  IEC:2012 – 5 –
– aligns B6-b MFD on B1.3 MFD.
The text of this standard is based on the following documents:
FDIS Report on voting
86A/1481/FDIS 86A/1490/RVD

Full information on the voting for the approval of this standard can be found in the report on
voting indicated in the above table.
This publication has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
A list of all parts of the IEC 60793 series can be found, under the general title Optical Fibres,
on the IEC website.
The committee has decided that the contents of this publication will remain unchanged until
the stability date indicated on the IEC web site under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in the data
related to the specific publication. At this date, the publication will be
• reconfirmed,
• withdrawn,
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.
The contents of the corrigendum of January 2014 have been included in this copy.

IMPORTANT – The 'colour inside' logo on the cover page of this publication indicates
that it contains colours which are considered to be useful for the correct
understanding of its contents. Users should therefore print this document using a
colour printer.

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OPTICAL FIBRES –

Part 2-50: Product specifications –
Sectional specification for class B single-mode fibres



1 Scope
This part of IEC 60793 is applicable to optical fibre categories B1.1, B1.2, B1.3, B2, B4, B5
and B6. A map illustrating the connection of IEC designations to ITU-T designations is shown
in Annex I. These fibres are used or can be incorporated in information transmission
equipment and optical fibre cables.
Three types of requirements apply to these fibres:
– general requirements, as defined in IEC 60793-2;
– specific requirements common to the class B single-mode fibres covered in this standard
and which are given in Clause 3;
– particular requirements applicable to individual fibre categories or specific applications,
which are defined in Annexes A to G.
For some fibre categories (shown in the relevant family specifications), there are sub-
categories that are distinguished on the basis of difference in transmission attribute
specifications. The designations for these sub-categories are documented in the individual
family specifications.
2 Normative references
The following documents, in whole or in part, are normatively referenced in this document and
are indispensable for its application. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any
amendments) applies.
IEC 60793-1 (all Parts 1), Optical fibres – Measurement methods and test procedures
IEC 60793-1-1, Optical fibres – Measurement methods and test procedures – Part 1-1:
General and guidance
IEC 60793-1-20, Optical fibres – Part 1-20: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Fibre geometry
IEC 60793-1-21, Optical fibres – Part 1-21: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Coating geometry
IEC 60793-1-22, Optical fibres – Part 1-22: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Length measurement
IEC 60793-1-30, Optical fibres – Part 1-30: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Fibre proof test
IEC 60793-1-31, Optical fibres – Part 1-31: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Tensile strength

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60793-2-50  IEC:2012 – 7 –
IEC 60793-1-32, Optical fibres – Part 1-32: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Coating strippability
IEC 60793-1-33, Optical fibres – Part 1-33: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Stress corrosion susceptibility
IEC 60793-1-34, Optical fibres – Part 1-34: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Fibre curl
IEC 60793-1-40:2011, Optical fibres – Part 1-40: Measurement methods and test procedures
– Attenuation
IEC 60793-1-42, Optical fibres – Part 1-42: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Chromatic dispersion
IEC 60793-1-44, Optical fibres – Part 1-44: Measurement methods and test procedures – Cut-
off wavelength
IEC 60793-1-45, Optical fibres – Part 1-45: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Mode field diameter
IEC 60793-1-46, Optical fibres – Part 1-46: Measurement methods and test procedures –

Monitoring of changes in optical transmittance
IEC 60793-1-47, Optical fibres – Part 1-47: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Macrobending loss
IEC 60793-1-48, Optical fibres – Part 1-48: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Polarization mode dispersion
IEC 60793-1-50, Optical fibres – Part 1-50: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Damp heat (steady state)
IEC 60793-1-51, Optical fibres – Part 1-51: Measurement methods and test procedures – Dry
heat
IEC 60793-1-52, Optical fibres – Part 1-52: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Change of temperature
IEC 60793-1-53, Optical fibres – Part 1-53: Measurement methods and test procedures –
Water immersion
IEC 60793-2, Optical fibres − Part 2: Product specifications – General
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, a number of definitions apply. General definitions for
fibres are provided in IEC 60793-2. The definitions of the specified attributes are contained in
the relevant test methods standard of the IEC 60793-1 series, while general definitions for
testing are provided in IEC 60793-1-1.
4 Abbreviations and symbols
The following abbreviations and symbols apply:

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– 8 – 60793-2-50  IEC:2012
λ zero dispersion wavelength
0
F average strip force
avg
F peak strip force
peak
MFD mode field diameter
stress corrosion parameter – dynamic
n
d
PMD polarization mode dispersion
PMD link design value
PMD
Q
5 Specifications
5.1 General
The fibre shall consist of a glass core and glass cladding in accordance with the construction
of optical fibre category B – single mode fibre – as given in IEC 60793-2.
The term “glass” usually refers to material consisting of non-metallic oxides. The composition
of some fibres may be all glass, or glass and glass/hard polymeric composites.
5.2 Dimensional requirements
Relevant dimensional attributes and measurement methods are given in Table 1.
Requirements common to all categories of class B single-mode fibres are given in Table 2.
Table 1 – Dimensional attributes and measurement methods
Attributes Measurement methods
Cladding diameter IEC 60793-1-20
Cladding non-circularity IEC 60793-1-20
Core-cladding concentricity error IEC 60793-1-20
Primary coating diameter IEC 60793-1-21
Primary coating non-circularity IEC 60793-1-21
Primary coating-cladding concentricity error IEC 60793-1-21
Fibre length IEC 60793-1-22

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60793-2-50  IEC:2012 – 9 –
Table 2 – Requirements common to all category B fibres
Attributes Unit Limits
a
Primary coating diameter – uncoloured µm 235 to 255
a
Primary coating diameter – coloured 235 to 265
µm
Primary coating-cladding concentricity error
µm ≤ 12,5
b

Fibre length km
NOTE 1 The primary coating cladding concentricity error should be limited to a maximum 10 um for 200 um.
NOTE 2 Alternate coating diameters may impact fibre connectivity such as ribbons, multi-fibre connectors,
mechanical splices, and fusion splice protectors.
NOTE 3 Alternate coating diameters may need adjustments to connectivity tools.
a
The above limits on primary coating diameter are most commonly used in telecommunications cables. There
are other applications, such as fibre for use within optical sub-systems, pigtails, or specialty applications
such as for submarines cables or for compact FTTH cables, which use other primary coating diameters,
several of which are listed below.
Alternative nominal primary coating diameters and ranges:
200 µm ± 10 µm (uncoloured; 190 to 220 µm coloured)
400 µm ± 40 µm
500 µm ± 30 µm
700 µm ± 100 µm
900 µm ± 100 µm
b
Length requirements vary and should be agreed between supplier and customer.

5.3 Mechanical requirements
Relevant mechanical attributes and test methods are given in Table 3. The relationship of
these attributes and requirements to mechanical reliability are described in IEC/TR 62048.
Requirements common to all categories of class B single-mode fibres are given in Table 4.
Table 3 – Mechanical attributes and test methods
Attributes Test methods
Proof test IEC 60793-1-30
Tensile strength IEC 60793-1-31
Coating strippability IEC 60793-1-32
Stress corrosion susceptibility IEC 60793-1-33
Fibre curl IEC 60793-1-34

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– 10 – 60793-2-50  IEC:2012
Table 4 – Requirements common to all category B fibres
Attributes Unit Limits
a
Proof stress level GPa ≥0,69
b, c
Coating strip force (average) N 1,0 ≤ F ≤ 5,0
ave
b, c
Coating strip force (peak) N
1,0 ≤ F ≤ 8,9
peak
d
Fibre curl radius m
≥2
Tensile strength (median) for 0,5 m specimen length GPa ≥ 3,8
Stress corrosion susceptibility parameter, n –
≥ 18
d
a
The proof test value of 0,69 GPa equals about 1 % strain or about 8,8 N force. For the relation between

these different units, see Clause 4 of IEC/TR 62048.
b
Either average strip force or peak strip force, which are defined in the test procedure, may be specified with
agreement between supplier and customer.
c
 In case of alternative nominal primary coating diameters (see Table 2), associated alternative coating strip

force values need to be agreed between supplier and customer.
d
Depending on splicing methods, a minimum of 4 m may be specified for fibre intended to be used in some
cable constructions – such as ribbon cable.

5.4 Transmission requirements
Relevant transmission attributes and measurement methods are given in Table 5.
Requirements common to all categories of class B single-mode fibres are shown in Table 6.
Requirements that shall be specified in the family specifications are listed in Table 7.
Table 5 – Transmission attributes and measurement methods
Attributes Measurement methods
a
Attenuation coefficient IEC 60793-1-40
Chromatic dispersion IEC 60793-1-42
b
Cut-off wavelength IEC 60793-1-44
Mode field diameter IEC 60793-1-45
Change of optical transmission IEC 60793-1-46
Macrobending loss IEC 60793-1-47
Polarization mode dispersion IEC 60793-1-48

NOTE The indicated maximum attenuation values apply to uncabled optical fibres; for the maximum cabled
attenuation values, reference is made to IEC 60794-2, which can be used in conjunction with this standard.
a
The attenuation coefficient at various wavelengths can be calculated using the measured values at a few
wavelengths using a spectral model such as that given in IEC 60793-1-40. For example, the attenuation at
1 480 nm can be calculated and used for design of systems that employ remote pumping of optical
amplifiers. When using Method C, OTDR, additional guidance information in IEC/TR 62316 should be taken
into account.
b
There are two ways to measure cut-off wavelength, leading to: fibre cut-off wavelength λ and to cable cut-
c
off wavelength λ , respectively. The correlation of the measured values of λ and λ depends on the
cc c cc
specific fibre and cable design and the test conditions. While in general λ < λ a general quantitative
cc c
relationship cannot be easily established, the importance of ensuring single-mode transmission in the
minimum cable length between joints at the minimum operating wavelength is paramount. This may be
performed by recommending the maximum cable cut-off wavelength λ of a cabled single-mode fibre to be 1
cc
260 nm or for worst case length and bends by recommending a maximum fibre cut-off wavelength λ to
c

be 1 250 nm.

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60793-2-50  IEC:2012 – 11 –
Table 6 – Requirements common to all category B fibres
Attributes Unit Limits
a

Polarization mode dispersion (PMD) coefficient link ps/√km
design value (PMD )
Q
a
A maximum value of PMD on uncabled fibre shall be agreed between supplier and customer to satisfy the
Q
primary requirement of cable PMD, given in IEC 60794-3.

Table 7 – Additional attributes required in the family specifications
Attributes
Attenuation coefficient and wavelengths
Chromatic dispersion characteristics
Nominal mode field diameter (MFD) range and wavelength
Mode field diameter tolerance
Cable cut-off wavelength
Macrobending loss including: wavelength, mandrel size, and number of turns
Cladding diameter
Cladding non-circularity
Core concentricity error

For categor
...