Patent ID: 8132971

Claim:
A method of centering at least one optical fiber having a centerline and an end, within at least one bore of a connector ferrule having a front end and a central axis, wherein the at least one optical fiber comprises a nano-engineered optical fiber having a core, a cladding surrounding the core and having non-periodically disposed voids, comprising: inserting at least one bare-fiber portion of the at least one optical fiber into the at least one ferrule bore so that a section of the at least one bare-fiber portion extends beyond the ferrule front end; selectively applying an amount of energy to the at least one bare-fiber section so as to substantially collapse the voids, forming a locally deformable region, wherein the locally deformable region is substantially void free; forming at least one bulge in the locally deformable region; and causing the at least one bulge to form a force-fit with the at least one bore at the ferrule front end, thereby substantially centering the at least one optical fiber centerline along the at least one bore central axis.