Hard Clad Silica Fibre

A type of optical fibre in which a silica glass core (diameter: typically 200 µm) is surrounded by a hard polymer or similar material much stronger than the customary cladding material (diameter: 230 µm typically).
The core and cladding can be separated from each other. The hard cladding layer imparts unique properties on these fibres, serving to provide total internal reflection, enhancing the fundamental strength of the fibre, and providing a crimp-worthy thin coating for simple and reliable connectorization in the field.
HCS fibres have large silica cores and medium bandwidth, supporting transmission rates of less than 100 Mb/s. HCS fibres are suitable for distances at such data rates of several tens of meters to several hundred meters.