EN IEC 61300 Fibre Optic Connecting Devices and Passive Components - Basic Test and Measurement Procedures

The standard “EN IEC 61300 Fibre optic connecting devices and passive components - Basic test and measurement procedures”, which is based on a European standard and subsequently published by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), consists of the following subsections published under the same title:

• The standard "EN IEC 61300-1 Part 1: General and guidance" provides general information and guidance for the basic test and measurement procedures defined in IEC 61300-2 and IEC 61300-3. This information and guidance applies to connected devices, passive components, mechanical splices, fusion splice protectors, fiber management systems, and protective enclosures. This standard is used in conjunction with the relevant specification, which defines the tests to be used, the degree of severity required for each, their order, if relevant, and the permissible performance limits. In the event of a conflict between this standard and the relevant specification, the latter shall take precedence.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-1 Part 2-1: Tests - Vibration (sinusoidal)" evaluates the effects of vibration on fiber optic devices over the predominant frequency ranges and magnitudes likely to be encountered in field service. Most vibrations encountered in service are not of a simple harmonic nature. However, tests based on such vibrations have been shown to be satisfactory for simulating actual service.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-2 Part 2-2: Tests - Mating endurance" describes a test method for evaluating the effects of a series of sequential connection and disconnection cycles of fiber optic connectors or other interconnecting devices on the optical performance and mechanical degradation of the component under normal use conditions. Specific technical changes from the previous edition include a mating endurance test for a plug-and-socket configuration, a new measurement condition, and a new severity level.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-4 Part 2-4: Tests - Fibre or cable retention” is to ensure the retention or attachment of fibre, cord or cable in a fibre optic device or in a housing.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-5 Part 2-5: Tests - Torsion” describes the ability of the cable connector of the device under test to withstand torsional loads that may be experienced during installation and normal service.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-6 Part 2-6: Tests - Tensile strength of the coupling mechanism” describes a test method to ensure that the coupling mechanism of a connector assembly or connector and device combination withstands the axial loads likely to be applied during normal service and that the optical performance remains within the given specifications during this test.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-7 Part 2-7: Tests - Bending moment" describes the procedure for determining the suitability of a fiber optic device to withstand the environmental conditions of a bending moment that may occur during actual use, storage, and transportation. The test is primarily intended to allow observation of the effects of a bending moment. Bending moment can cause effects that will eliminate functional benefit, cause loss of physical strength, or lead to changes in other important mechanical properties. Deterioration of optical properties may also occur. The sample can be a component, a connector set, a splice, or any other combination of devices designed for fiber optic use.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-9 Part 2-9: Tests - Shock" describes a test method for revealing mechanical weakness or degradation of fiber optic devices when subjected to repetitive or non-repetitive mechanical shocks. It simulates infrequent repetitive or non-repetitive shocks likely to be encountered in normal service or during transportation.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-10 Part 2-10: Tests - Crush and load resistance” evaluates the effect of loads that may occur when fiber optic devices are subjected to critical situations such as being stepped on, being crushed by vehicle tires, applying a uniformly distributed static load to the top surface of a street cabinet, or applying a load to the open door of a street cabinet.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-11 Part 2-11: Tests - Axial compression” is designed to ensure that the connection or fastening of cable to fibre optic devices or components, e.g. fibre optic closure elements, can withstand the axial compressive loads likely to be applied during normal service.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-12 Part 2-12: Tests - Impact" assesses the ability of a passive fiber optic device or enclosure to withstand impacts likely to be encountered in use. The impact can be a local impact, a series of impacts with hard objects, or an impact normally associated with dropping the device.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-14 Part 2-14: Tests - High optical power” describes the procedure for determining the resistance of a fiber optic connecting device or passive component to exposure to optical power generated during its operation.
• In the standard "EN IEC 61300-2-15 Part 2-15: Tests - Torque resistance of coupling mechanisms," overload torque is applied to twist-type coupling mechanisms. It is applicable to threaded or bayonet twist-type coupling mechanisms. A coupling set or combination of coupling devices can be used to ensure that the coupling mechanism withstands the torsional loads likely to be applied during normal service.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-17 Part 2-17: Tests - Cold" describes the procedure for determining the suitability of a fiber optic device to withstand prolonged low-temperature (cold) environmental conditions that may occur during use, storage, or transportation. This procedure does not evaluate the ability of a device to operate during temperature changes. In this case, IEC 61300-2-22 applies.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-18 Part 2-18: Tests - Dry heat" describes a procedure for determining the suitability of a fiber optic interconnection device, passive component, splice, or closure to withstand prolonged high-temperature environmental conditions occurring during operation, storage, or transportation. The test aims to demonstrate the performance of such devices when exposed to constant heat for a defined period. Generally speaking, this test provides an elevated temperature to cause potential failure due to softening and expansion. This procedure does not evaluate the ability of a device to operate during temperature changes. In this case, IEC 61300-2-22 applies.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-19 Part 2-19: Tests - Damp heat (steady state)" describes the procedure for determining the suitability of a fiber optic device to withstand high humidity and high temperature environmental conditions that may occur during actual use, storage, or transportation. The test is primarily intended to allow observation of the effects of high humidity at a constant temperature for a specified period.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-21 Part 2-21: Tests - Combined temperature/humidity cyclic test" determines the resistance of a fiber optic device to the degrading effects of high temperature, humidity, and cold conditions. It is intended to reveal defects in a device under test caused by respiration, as opposed to moisture absorption. The test covers the effects of condensation and freezing of water trapped in cracks and crevices. However, the degree of condensation varies depending on the size and thermal mass of the device under test.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-22 Part 2-22: Tests - Temperature change” describes the procedure for determining the suitability of a fiber optic connecting device and a passive component to withstand the effects of temperature change or sequential temperature changes.
• In the standard “EN IEC 61300-2-23 Part 2-23: Tests - Sealing of non-pressure closures of fibre optic devices” the sealing effectiveness of non-pressure closures when immersed in water is evaluated.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-24 Part 2-44: Tests - Flexing of stress relief for fiber optic devices and components" describes a test method for determining the effect of bending stress relief on fiber optic connecting devices or components under tensile loading. The purpose is to simulate the number of bending cycles typically experienced during service life. This test is applied to both single-fiber and multi-fiber cables.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-26 Part 2-26: Tests - Salt fog" describes a test method for determining the corrosion resistance of metals used in the construction of fiber optic connecting devices and passive components. This standard determines whether dissimilar metals are adequately finished to prevent corrosion. Test requirements for these devices are included in the standard IEC 61753-1.
• In the standard “EN IEC 61300-2-27 Part 2-27: Tests - Dust (laminar flow)”, the effects of dust on fiber optic connecting devices or passive components are determined.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-28 Part 2-28: Tests - Corrosive atmosphere (sulfur dioxide)" evaluates the corrosive effects of atmospheres contaminated with sulfur dioxide on fiber optic devices. The procedure is suitable for comparison purposes only. It can be considered a general corrosion test but does not predict the behavior of devices in service.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-29 Part 2-29: Tests - Low air pressure” is for determining the effect on a fiber optic device of low air pressure that may be encountered at high altitudes.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-33 Part 2-33: Tests - Assembly and disassembly of fibre optic mechanical splices, fibre management systems and closures” is part of a series that evaluates the assembly and reassembly of a fibre optic mechanical splice, a fibre management system or a closure element over a defined period of time.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-34 Part 2-34: Tests - Resistance to solvents and contaminating liquids” describes a procedure for testing the resistance and functionality of fiber optic connectors, passive components and protective housings to solvents and contaminating liquids.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-35 Part 2-35: Tests - Nutation of cable" describes procedures for determining the suitability of a fiber optic device to withstand nutation that may occur during operation, service, storage, or transportation. The test aims to demonstrate the performance of such devices when subjected to torsion and bending as a combined load.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-37 Part 2-37: Tests - Cable bending for fibre optic closures” describes a test method to test the effectiveness of the sealing and compression hardware of a fibre optic closure when the cable entering or exiting a fibre optic closure is subjected to bending.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-38 Part 2-38: Tests - Sealing for fibre optic seals and hardened connectors using air pressure” describes two methods for testing the sealing performance of a fibre optic seal and hardened connector using air pressure.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-39 Part 2-39: Tests - Susceptibility to external magnetic field” describes the test method for measuring the sensitivity of a component to changes in its optical performance when an external magnetic field is applied to it.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-40 Part 2-40: Testing - Screen testing of attenuation of single-mode adjusted angle optical connectors” describes the test method for screening single-mode adjusted connectors equipped with an adjustment mechanism for adjustment errors.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-41 Part 2-41: Tests - Screen test of attenuation of single-mode adjustable non-angled optical fiber connectors" describes a screen test designed for adjustable single-mode non-angled optical fiber connectors. The purpose of this test is to ensure optimal adjustment of the adjusted plugs. The procedures described in this test apply to both optical patch cords and pigtail cables.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-42 Part 2-42: Tests - Static side load for strain relief" describes a test method for determining the effect of a side load applied to a cord combined with a strain relief. The purpose is to simulate the static load generated by a length of fiber cable that would typically be experienced in service. The components must withstand the side loads without deterioration of optical performance during optical transmission. Besides a boot, any feature that controls the bend radius of the fiber can be considered a strain relief.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-43 Part 2-43: Tests - Screen test of return loss of single-mode PC optical fiber connectors" is intended to screen single-mode physical contact optical fiber connector plugs of an optical fiber patch cord or an optical fiber pigtail for return loss, thereby ensuring minimum return loss when the connector plugs are randomly mated with each other in the field. This standard is intended to apply to cylindrical ferrules connector plugs.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-44 Part 2-44: Tests - Flexing of stress relief for fiber optic devices and components" describes a test method for determining the effect of bending stress relief on fiber optic interconnect devices or components under tensile loading. The purpose is to simulate the number of bending cycles typically experienced during service life. This test is applied to both single-fiber and multi-fiber cables.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-45 Part 2-45: Tests - Durability test by water immersion” describes a test method to determine the ability of a fiber optic component to resist degradation, such as water immersion, to which it may be exposed during its service life.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-46 Part 2-46: Tests - Damp heat, cyclic" describes a test method for determining the suitability of a fiber optic device to withstand the environmental conditions of high humidity and temperature variation that may occur during actual use, storage, or transportation. The test is primarily intended to determine the suitability of fiber optic components under conditions of high humidity (combined with cyclic temperature variations and generally producing condensation on the surface of the device under test). Moisture absorption can cause swelling that can eliminate functional benefit, cause loss of physical strength, and lead to changes in other important mechanical properties. Deterioration of optical properties can also occur. Although not designed as a simulated tropical test, this test can still be useful in determining the moisture absorption of insulation or cladding materials.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-47 Part 2-47: Tests - Thermal shocks" describes the procedure for determining the suitability of a fiber optic device to withstand thermal shock effects. In practice, this means a very short change in time between temperature extremes.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-48 Part 2-48: Tests - Temperature-humidity cycling" describes the procedure for determining the suitability of a fiber optic device or enclosure to withstand humidity and temperature changes that may occur during operation, storage, or transport. The test aims to demonstrate the performance of such devices when exposed to heat and humidity followed by brief freezing.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-49 Part 2-49: Tests - Connector installation test” describes a test method to determine whether a connector can function when installed in a cabinet or other enclosure where available space is limited.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-50 art 2-50: Tests - Fiber optic connector endurance testing by static load - Single-mode and multi-mode" describes a test method for quantitatively evaluating the ability of connector-terminated patchcord cable assemblies to withstand static loads without connector separation, physical damage to the assembly, or permanent deterioration of optical performance. This test is designed to be applied to terminated reinforced-jacketed cable of any diameter, both single-mode and multi-mode.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-51 Part 2-51: Tests - Testing of fibre optic connectors for transmission with applied tensile load - Single-mode and multi-mode" describes a test method to quantitatively evaluate the ability of fibre assemblies terminated with fibre optic connectors to withstand static tensile loads without connector separation, physical damage to the assembly or deterioration of optical performance. This test is intended to be applied to fibre assemblies using either:
  • Media type 1: Reinforced jacketed cord of any diameter
  • Media type 2: 900 m buffer coated cable which may or may not be reinforced
  • Media type 3: 250 m coated fiber termination connectors
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-53 Part 3-53: Examinations and measurements - Method for measuring enclosed angular flux (EAF) based on two-dimensional far-field data from a multimode waveguide (including fiber)" defines the enclosed angular flux measurement of multimode waveguide light sources in which most of the transverse modes are excited. The term waveguide includes both channel waveguides and optical fibers, but does not include sheet waveguides. Applicable fiber types are:
  • A1 specified in the IEC 60793-2-10 standard
  • A3 specified in the IEC 60793-2-30 standard
  • A4 specified in the IEC 60793-2-40 standard
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-54 Part 2-54: Tests - Corrosive atmosphere (mixed gas)" is for evaluating the corrosive effects of mixed gas-contaminated atmospheres on fiber optic devices. It can be considered a general corrosion test, but it does not predict the performance of a device in service.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-2-55 Part 2-55: Tests - Strength of mounted adapter” describes the test method for measuring the mounting strength of an optical adapter or receptacle to a fixture.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-2-56 Part 2-56: Tests - Wind resistance of mounted enclosure" describes a test method for testing the wind resistance of a protective enclosure and its mounting hardware using the manufacturer's recommended fixings. The protective enclosure is assumed to have a cuboid shape. The force applied in this test procedure simulates a constant wind load on a protective enclosure and its mounting hardware fixed to a support from all directions.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-1 Part 3-1: Inspections and measurements - Visual inspection" provides criteria for the visual and mechanical inspection of fiber optic component parts, connectors, and passive components. The inspection method can be used at any stage of the qualification or quality conformity inspection process, as a stand-alone test, or as required by the relevant specification.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-2 Part 3-2: Inspection and measurements - Polarization-dependent loss in a single-mode fiber optic device" describes measurement methods for determining the dependence of loss in a single-mode fiber optic device on changes in polarization. This procedure focuses on measurements with a fixed wavelength source. Therefore, this procedure is applicable to devices whose characteristics at a single wavelength can be representative of those at a wider wavelength band. Typical examples of such devices are single-mode connecting devices and passive components, including connectors, splices, branching devices, attenuators, isolators, and switches. The maximum observed change in transmission loss is called the polarization-dependent loss. This standard applies to wide-band devices and does not apply to narrow-band devices such as filters and multiplexers. IEC 61300-3-29 applies to such measurements.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-3 Part 3-3: Inspections and measurements - Active monitoring of changes in attenuation and return loss" describes a procedure for monitoring changes in attenuation or return loss when a component or interconnecting device is subjected to an environmental or mechanical test. This type of procedure is often referred to as active monitoring. In many cases, it is more efficient to monitor attenuation and return loss simultaneously.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-4 Part 3-4: Inspections and measurements - Attenuation" describes various methods available for measuring the attenuation of optical components. However, they are not applicable to the random attenuation measurements described in IEC 61300-3-34 and IEC 61300-3-45, or to the attenuation measurements of dense wavelength-division multiplexing devices described in IEC 61300-3-29.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-6 Part 3-6: Inspections and measurements - Return loss" describes procedures for measuring the return loss of a fiber optic device under test. Return loss, as used in this standard, is the ratio of the power arriving at or entering the equipment under test to the total power reflected by the equipment under test, expressed in decibels.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-7 Part 3-7: Examinations and measurements - Wavelength dependence of attenuation and return loss of single-mode components" describes methods that can be used to measure the wavelength dependence of attenuation and return loss of dual-port, single-mode passive optical components. However, it is not applicable to dense wavelength-division multiplexing devices. Methods for measuring the wavelength dependence of attenuation of these devices are described in the standard IEC 61300-3-29. There are two measurement cases described in this document:
  • Only measuring weight loss
  • Simultaneous measurement of attenuation and return loss
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-11 Part 3-11: Examinations and measurements - Connection and separation forces” is for measuring the forces or torques required to fully mate or separate a set of optical connectors.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-14 Part 3-14: Inspections and measurements - Error and repeatability of attenuation settings of variable optical attenuators" describes a method for measuring the error and repeatability of attenuation value settings of variable optical attenuators. There are two control technologies for variable optical attenuators: manually controlled and electrically controlled. This standard covers both control technologies for variable optical attenuators, as well as both single-mode and multi-mode fiber variable optical attenuators.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-19 Part 3-19: Examinations and Measurements - Polarization Dependence of the Return Loss of a Single-Mode Fiber Optic Component" describes a test method for determining the dependence of the return loss of a single-mode fiber optic component on the polarization state of the light passing through the component. Return loss is the absolute value in decibels of the ratio of the total reflected power to the power arriving at the fiber optic link or system. Because the polarization state of light in a component is often undetermined and, in fact, often varies as a function of time, a component exhibiting polarization dependence will have variable return loss in a system. This procedure is applicable to any single-mode passive component and interconnecting device, including attenuators, isolators, branching devices, switches, connectors, and splices.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-20 Part 3-20: Examinations and measurements - Directivity of fiber optic branching devices" describes a procedure applicable to measuring the directivity of light between channels of a multi-port, non-wavelength-selective MxN fiber optic branching device. Directivity is the fraction of light that passes from one normally isolated input path to the other.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-21 Part 3-21: Examinations and measurements - Switching time” describes a method for measuring the switching time and related performance parameters when operating energy is applied or removed to change the state of a fiber optic spatial switch.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-22 Part 3-22: Examinations and measurements - Ferrule compression force" describes the procedure for measuring the spring force applied to a ferrule when the plugs are engaged during normal service. This measurement procedure applies to a connector plug with a spring-loaded ferrule.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-25 Part 3-25: Inspections and measurements - Concentricity of non-angular ferrules and fiber-mounted non-angled ferrules” describes the procedure for determining the concentricity of the axis of the hole to the sleeve axis in a non-angled sleeve and the procedure for determining the concentricity of the axis of the fiber core to the sleeve axis in fiber-mounted non-angled sleeves.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-26 Part 3-26: Inspections and measurements - Measurement of angular misalignment between fiber and ferrules axes” describes the procedure for measuring the angular misalignment between fiber and ferrules axes in a cylindrical ferrules with fibers attached, in single-mode fiber optic connectors.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-27 Part 3-27: Inspections and measurements - Measurement method for the hole location of a multiway connector plug” is for measuring the hole location of a multiway connector plug that has multiple fiber holes for lining up fibers and two guide holes for positioning two alignment pins. The following dimensions on the plug end face must be accurately measured to meet the specified mechanical and optical performance of the connector:
  • Distance between two guide hole centers
  • Position deviation of each fiber hole center
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-28 Part 3-28: Inspections and measurements - Transient loss" describes methods for measuring the rapid change in attenuation due to mechanical stresses applied to optical fibers and passive optical components throughout their lifespan. This method is not designed to measure very fast transient losses (less than 1 ms duration) that can affect the performance of transmission systems. It is optimized for detecting transient losses due to mechanical stresses, as prescribed in component performance standards, and typically occurring in tests longer than a few tens of milliseconds in duration.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-29 Part 3-29: Examinations and measurements - Spectral transfer characteristics of DWDM devices" describes two basic measurement methods for characterizing the spectral transfer functions of DWDM devices. Transfer functions are wavelength-dependent transmittance functions. Optical attenuations are also used in this standard. Transfer functions can be used to produce measurements of insertion loss, polarization-dependent loss, isolation, center wavelength, bandwidth, and other optical performances.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-30 Part 3-30: Inspection and measurements - Rectangular ferrules end face geometry" describes a method for measuring the end face geometry of rectangular multifiber ferrules with an IEC-defined optical interface. The primary attributes are fiber position relative to the end face, retraction or protrusion, end face angle relative to the guide pin holes, fiber end radii, and, for multimode fibers, core pitch.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-32 Part 3-32: Examinations and measurements - Polarization mode dispersion measurement for passive optical components" describes a number of alternative methods for measuring the polarization mode dispersion of a passive fiber optic device under test. These methods generally measure polarization mode dispersion using either the frequency domain or the time domain approach.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-33 Part 3-33: Inspections and measurements - Pull-out force through a flexible alignment sleeve using pin gauges" describes the procedure for measuring the pull-out force between the pin gauge and the flexible alignment sleeve. This measurement procedure is applicable to single-fiber cylindrical ferrules optical connectors.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-34 Part 3-34: Inspections and measurements - Attenuation of randomly assembled connectors” describes the procedure for measuring the statistical distribution and average attenuation for randomly assembled optical connectors.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-35 Part 3-35: Inspections and measurements - Visual inspection of fibre optic connectors and fibre-stud transceivers" deals with the observation and classification of debris, scratches and defects. The inspection requirements are based on IEC TR 62627-05. Recommendations for cleaning contamination from fibres/ferrules are contained in IEC TR 62627-01. IEC TR 62572-4 provides a cleaning method for a protrusion for optical transceivers.
• In the standard “EN IEC 61300-3-36 Part 3-36: Inspections and measurements - Measurement methods for the inner and outer diameters of fiber optic connector ferrules”, measurement methods for the inner diameter of fiber optic connector ferrules are described.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-38 Part 3-38: Examinations and measurements - Group delay, chromatic dispersion and phase ripple" describes the measurement methods required to characterize the group delay characteristics of passive devices and dynamic modules. Other parameters such as group delay ripple, linear phase deviation, chromatic dispersion, dispersion slope, and phase ripple can be derived from these measurements. Additionally, when these measurements are made with resolved polarization, the differential group delay can also be determined using the dedicated methods of IEC 61300-3-32 as an alternative to separate measurements.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-39 Part 3-39: Examinations and measurements - Selection of physical contact (PC) optical connector reference plugs for return loss measurements" selects non-angled physical contact optical connector plugs for use as reference plugs in return loss measurements and defines an acceptance return loss value for use in plug acceptance testing. This procedure is used to ensure a specified return loss value when two plugs are randomly paired and successfully tested against the reference connector.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-42 Part 3-42: Inspections and measurements - Attenuation of single-mode alignment sleeves and/or adapters with flexible alignment sleeves” describes the attenuation of single-mode adapters with flexible sleeves and the method for measuring the attenuation of flexible sleeves.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-43 Part 3-43: Examinations and measurements - Measurement of the mode transfer function for fiber optic sources" describes a method for measuring the mode transfer function to be used to characterize the launch conditions for attenuation or return loss measurements of multimode passive components. The mode transfer function can be measured at operational wavelengths.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-45 Part 3-45: Inspections and measurements - Attenuation of randomly assembled multi-fiber connectors" describes the procedure for measuring the statistical distribution and average attenuation for randomly assembled optical connectors with polished multi-fiber rectangular ferrules with physical contact and angled physical contact as defined in the standard series IEC 61754. This measurement method is applicable to cable assemblies.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-46 Part 3-46: Inspections and measurements - Hole diameter in rectangular ferrules” provides a standard for measuring guide pin hole and fiber hole diameters for rectangular ferrules used in connectors specified in the IEC 61754 series.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-47 Part 3-47: Inspections and measurements - End face geometry of PC/APC spherically polished ferrules using interferometry" describes a procedure for measuring the end face geometry of a spherically polished ferrules or connector. In this standard, the words ferrule and connector are used interchangeably.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-48 Part 3-48: Inspections and measurements - Spring compression force of the connection sleeve for multi-fiber connectors with rectangular ferrules” describes the procedure for measuring the spring compression force of the connection sleeve for multi-fiber connectors with rectangular ferrules.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-49 Part 3-49: Inspections and measurements - Guide pin retention force for multi-fiber connectors with rectangular ferrules” describes the procedure for measuring the guide pin retention force for multi-fiber connectors with rectangular ferrules to ensure that the pins remain in place during mating/de-mating.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-50 Part 3-50: Examinations and measurements - Crosstalk for optical spatial switches" describes the procedure for measuring the crosstalk of optical signals between the ports of a multi-port M x N (M input port and N output port) fiber optic spatial switch. Crosstalk is defined as the ratio of the optical power at an output port from a non-connected input port to the optical power at an output port from a connected input port.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-51 Part 3-51: Examinations and measurements - Pin gauge withdrawal force for rectangular ferrule multi-fiber connectors" describes the procedure for measuring the pin gauge withdrawal force for rectangular ferrule multi-fiber connectors. This measurement can be used as an alternative to measuring the pin gauge insertion force. Both evaluate the fit of the pin gauge(s) to the guide pin hole(s) of the female type connector. Experimental verification of interchangeability is shown in Annex A. For the male type connector, IEC 61300-3-49 is applied to evaluate how securely the guide pins are held in the guide holes.
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-52 Part 3-52: Inspections and measurements - Guide hole and alignment pin deformation constant, CD for 8-degree angled PC rectangular ferrules, single-mode fibers” describes a procedure to measure the guide hole and alignment pin deformation constant CD for 8-degree angled PC rectangular ferrule multi-fiber connectors.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-53 Part 3-53: Examinations and measurements - Method for measurement of enclosed angular flux (EAF) based on two-dimensional far-field data from multimode waveguide (including fiber)" defines the enclosed angular flux measurement of multimode waveguide light sources in which most of the transverse modes are excited. It is understood that the term waveguide includes both channel waveguides and optical fibers, but not sheet waveguides. Applicable fiber types are:
  • A1 specified in the IEC 60793-2-10 standard
  • A3 specified in the IEC 60793-2-30 standard
  • A4 specified in the IEC 60793-2-40 standard
• The standard “EN IEC 61300-3-54 Part 3-54: Inspections and measurements - Angular misalignment between the bore axis and the outer diameter reference axis of a cylindrical ferrules” describes the procedure for measuring the angular misalignment between the bore axis of a cylindrical ferrules and the outer diameter reference axis.
• The standard "EN IEC 61300-3-55 Part 3-55: Tests and Measurements - Polarization extinction ratio and switching accuracy of passive polarization-maintaining optical components" provides methods for measuring the polarization extinction ratio of single-mode, polarization-maintaining optical components based on PM fibers. This standard also provides methods for determining the input and output orientation of the principal axes of PM components and, if present, methods for estimating the switching accuracy, i.e., the angular mismatch between the principal axes and the mechanical reference guide key of the connectors.

In short, the EN IEC 61300 standards are critical because they provide test methods for fiber optic connecting devices and passive components such as connectors, couplers, switches, and attenuators. These components are crucial to the performance and reliability of fiber optic communication systems used in telecommunications, data centers, aerospace, military, and industrial applications.

Our organization, which has been supporting businesses across all sectors for years through a wide range of testing, measurement, analysis, and evaluation activities, has a strong team of employees who closely follow global developments in science and technology and are constantly improving themselves. In this context, we also provide testing services in accordance with the EN IEC 61300 Fiber optic connection devices and passive components - Basic test and measurement procedures standard.