Multicore Flat Fiber: A New Fabrication Technique

A new method of fabricating multicore flat fiber (MCFF) is proposed. A 40-m long, 230-mu m x 670-mu m MCFF with six cores arranged in one row is demonstrated with polymer coating. The fabricated fiber with and without polymer coating can tolerate down to 1 and 2 cm of bending diameter, respectively. The intercore crosstalk over 40 m of MCFF is shown to be less than -74 dB. This method significantly simplifies fabrication of MCFF and provides rapid and flexible manufacturing of km-length MCFF for telecommunication applications.