Patent ID: 9566752
Date: 2017-02-14
CPC Classifications: B23K,B29D,G01J,G02B

Claim:
1. A method of forming a faceted total-internal-reflection (TIR) optical fiber lens on an end of an optical fiber having a first axis and a core and a cladding, comprising: heating the fiber end to form a bulbous tip and an effective fiber end at a first location adjacent the bulbous tip; allowing the bulbous tip to cool, the bulbous tip having a refractive index, a center and a curved outer surface; laser cleaving the cooled bulbous tip to form a facet that intersects the first axis at a facet angle θ that defines the facet as a TIR surface; and heating a portion of the optical fiber immediately adjacent the first location to blend the core and cladding to move the effective fiber end to a second location that is farther away from the bulbous tip than the first location.