BOC Scientist to Discuss Lowering Costs for Making Low-Water Peak Optical Fiber.

MURRAY HILL, N.J. -- If producing optical fiber with maximum light-carrying capacity at lower cost is your goal, be sure to speak with BOC (NYSE: BOX) at the National Fiber Optics Expo and Conference/Optical Fiber Conference in Anaheim, Calif., next month.

Art Shirley, Ph.D., BOC scientist, will discuss improvements in materials and manufacturing processes required to produce lower cost "low-water peak" optical fiber (LWPF) for maximum light-carrying capacity. Shirley, who is director of commercialization and technology, fiber optic solutions, will present a paper entitled "Improved Materials for Low-Water Peak Fiber Manufacture," at the JWA Poster Session II on Wednesday, March 9, at 6 p.m. in the California Ballroom, Hilton Anaheim.

"Processes that remove water and/or prevent it from diffusing into the silica matrix are required to produce LWPF. As demand for this type of optical fiber increases, manufacturers have adopted new materials and manufacturing methods to reach more difficult attenuation specifications for these products," explains Shirley.

LWPF provides the most light-carrying capacity now available in the optical fiber industry. According to industry experts, production volumes of LWPF are projected to show a compound annual growth rate of greater than 20 percent over the next three years.

Conventional optical fiber has a lower light-carrying capacity because the "water peak" eliminates wavelengths between 1360 and 1460 nanometers (about 30 percent of available channels) due to high light attenuation. The water peak appears because hydrogen, which readily diffuses through the glass matrix of an optical fiber, is trapped at defects in the glass structure, causing attenuation.

To make LWPF, conventional single-mode optical fiber production processes must be modified to reduce or eliminate moisture in the raw materials and/or in the manufacturing processes. Such process improvements reduce water levels in the glass from 10 parts per billion (ppb) to less than 1 ppb. Careful control of moisture levels at every step reduces attenuation significantly.

Shirley, who holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering and has contributed to the industrial gases, chemicals, petroleum and fiber optics fields for more than 20 years, will discuss the raw materials and process improvements required to achieve these levels during his presentation. Dr. Shirley has published 25 papers and holds more than 120 U.S. and foreign patents.

The BOC Fiber Optic Solutions Group uses its extensive knowledge, skills and experience to meet the complex requirements and challenges of optical fiber manufacturers. Since the late 1970s, BOC has been supplying high-purity gases, chemicals, equipment, services and technologies to the optical fiber manufacturing community. Visit BOC at booth number 3149 during the National Fiber Optics Expo and Conference/Optical Fiber Conference March 8-10 at Anaheim Convention Center.

The BOC Group (NYSE:BOX), the worldwide industrial gases, vacuum technologies and distribution services company, serves two million customers in more than 50 countries. It employs more than 43,000 people and compiled annual sales above $8.3 billion in 2004. Further information about The BOC Group may be obtained on the Internet at http://www.boc.com.