Know More About LC And SC Fiber Patch Cable

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Fiber patch cable plays an important
role in optical links. It is a fiber optic cable terminated with one fiber
optic connector on both ends. Among the various types of fiber patch cables, LC
to LC patch cable and SC
fiber optic cable are two of the most commonly used fiber patch cables.
It is not difficult to understand that the difference between LC and SC fiber
patch cable lies in LC connector and SC connector. So, learning about LC
connector and SC connector will help you know more about LC and SC fiber patch
cable.

 

Overview of LC Connector And SC
Connector

LC connector has a push and latch
structure, with plastic shell and accurate 1.25mm ceramic ferrule. It is in
small size and has good performance. Standing for Subscriber Connector or
Square Connector or Standard Connector, SC connector is a kind of push and pull
connector. It has a locking tab which can make accurate alignment through
ceramic ferrule. The following figure shows LC connector and SC connector.

 

Comparison Between LC Connector And SC
Connector

This part will make comparison between
LC connector and SC connector from three aspects: size, handing and
application.

 

Size: LC connector is half the size of
SC connector. The ceramic ferrule of LC connector is 1.25mm, while SC
connector’s ceramic ferrule is 2.5mm.

 

Handing: LC is a push and latch
connector while SC is a push and pull connector. You can have better
understanding of this from the above figure.

 

Application: Structured with half the
footprint of the SC connector gives LC connector huge popularity in data
communication and other high-density patch applications. In addition, the
combination of small size and latch feature makes LC connector very popular and
widely used for dense installation. While SC connector features low cost,
simplicity as well as good durability, and it remains the second most common
connector for polarization maintaining applications. The SC connector is
ideally suited for data communication and telecommunication applications
including point to point and passive optical networking.

 

Another Fiber Patch Cable

As LC connector and SC connector have
their own advantages, both LC patch cable and SC patch cable are widely used in
optical network deployment. But, is there a kind of fiber patch cable that
combines LC connector and SC connector? The answer is “Yes”. There is a kind of
SC to LC patch cable on the market. As the figure below shows, it is a high
quality 50/125μm OM4 multimode fiber patch cable. This LC to SC cable is housed
in a PVC (OFNR) retardant jacket, with UPC polish. It support 850/1300nm
wavelength. It’s a great option for high-speed, high bandwidth transmissions
over Gigabit Ethernet/fiber channel networks.

 

Conclusion

As the demand for higher bandwidth is
increasing, fiber patch cable is commonly used in network deployment. Both LC
patch cable and SC patch cable are designed to achieve such a kind of
transmission, and they have their own advantages. What’s more, LC to SC fiber
patch cable is also available to realize the transmission between devices terminated
with LC and SC connector.