City of light : the story of fiber optics / Jeff Hecht.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hecht, Jeff.

Series:

Sloan technology series

The Sloan technology series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Fiber optics.

Physical Description:

xii, 316 pages, 12 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

New York : Oxford University Press, 1999.

Summary:

This readable account is likely to become the definitive history of fiber optics. Starting from early Victorian times, when fiber optics was viewed simply as a parlor trick, Jeff Hecht gives us the full story, including the characters, discoveries, and fortuitous accidents that made the technology possible. Fiber optics is now the backbone of a multi-billion dollar global communications network which includes the internet, telecommunications, and cable TV, plus laser, military, and medical uses, and this fascinating survey covers the full range of its applications. The book concludes with a realistic took into future possibilities.

Contents:

1 Introduction: Building a City of Light 3

2 Guiding Light and Luminous Fountains (1841-1890) 12

3 Fibers of Glass 28

4 The Quest for Remote Viewing: Television and the Legacy of Sword Swallowers (1895-1940) 34

5 A Critical Insight: The Birth of the Clad Optical Fiber (1950-1955) 46

6 99 Percent Perspiration: The Birth of an Industry (1954-1960) 60

7 A Vision of the Future: Communicating with Light (1880-1960) 76

8 The Laser Stimulates the Emission of New Ideas (1960-1969) 92

9 "The Only Thing Left Is Optical Fibers" (1960-1969) 103

10 Trying to Sell a Dream (1965-1970) 117

11 Breakthrough: The Clearest Glass in the World (1966-1972) 131

12 Recipes for Grains of Salt: The Semiconductor Laser (1962-1977) 147

13 A Demonstration for the Queen (1970-1975) 160

14 Three Generations in Five Years (1975-1983) 176

15 Submarine Cables: Covering the Ocean Floor with Glass (1970-1995) 201

16 The Last Mile: An Elusive Vision 216

17 Reflections on the City of Light 227

18 Epilogue: The Boom, the Bubble, and the Bust 239

Appendix A. Dramatis Personae: Cast of Characters 257

Appendix B. A Fiber-Optic Chronology 265.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 259-304) and index.

ISBN:

0195108183

OCLC:

38527799