Cleaning Information
General Cleaning Procedure
144
Agilent
8169A
Polarization Controller, Second Edition
General Cleaning Procedure
Light dirt
If you just want to clean away light dirt, observe the following procedure
for all devices:
• Use compressed air to blow away large particles.
• Clean the device with a dry cotton swab.
• Use compressed air to blow away any remaining filament left by the swab.
Heavy dirt
If the above procedure is not enough to clean your instrument, follow one
of the procedures below.
If you are unsure of how sensitive your device is to cleaning, please
contact the manufacturer or your sales distributor
How to clean connectors
Cleaning connectors is difficult as the core diameter of a single mode fiber
is only about 9 mm. This generally means you cannot see streaks or
scratches on its surface. To be certain of the condition of the surface of
your connector and to check it after cleaning, you need a microscope.
In the case of scratches, or of dust that has been burnt onto the surface of
the connector, you may have no option but to polish the connector. This
depends on the degree of dirtiness, or the depth of the scratches. This is a
difficult procedure and should only be performed by a skilled person, and
as a last resort as it wears out your connector.
Never look into the end of an optical cable that is connected to an
active source.
To assess the projection of the emitted light beam you can use an
infrared sensor card. Hold the card approximately 5 cm from the
output of the connector. The invisible emitted light is projected
onto the card and becomes visible as a small circular spot.
WA RN I N G
