Chapter 1
Bending light inside glass
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Chapter 2
The deep sea cable network
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Chapter 3
Beaming data through thin air
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Chapter 4
Translating data into photons
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YOUR GOAL
Master of Internet on beams of light
Ch 1 · Bending light inside glass
play_review Bending Light in Glass
Bounce in the glass, flashing so fast, we're surfing the beam!
play_review Engineer Charles Kao discovered in 1966 that purifying glass could allow light signals to travel for miles without fading.
Fun Fact
Water pipe light: In 1840, Swiss physicist Daniel Colladon demonstrated light guiding by shining a lantern into a pouring stream of water.
play_review In 1953, physicist Narinder Singh Kapany successfully transmitted high-quality images through a bundle of glass fibers, coining the term fiber optics.
Glossary
total internal reflection (noun)
The complete reflection of a light ray back into its original medium when hitting a boundary at an angle larger than the critical angle. In 1870, John Tyndall demonstrated this phenomenon, which today traps light inside glass to transmit internet data.
The complete reflection of a light ray back into its original medium when hitting a boundary at an angle larger than the critical angle. In 1870, John Tyndall demonstrated this phenomenon, which today traps light inside glass to transmit internet data.
Quiz
Compared to copper wires, why is fiber optic data transmission immune to electromagnetic interference?
play_review Steer light beams through fiber cables to discover how the internet moves data.
Quiz
In what decade did physicists successfully demonstrate the first flexible glass fiber optic bundles?
Quiz
Who coined the term 'fiber optics' after successfully transmitting images through glass bundles in 1953?
Quiz
Which material is primarily used to make the ultra-pure core of modern fiber optic cables?
Quiz
Which part of a fiber optic cable has a lower refractive index to keep light bounced inside the core?