Abstract
This thesis examines a new technique for measuring the transfer function of optical fibre waveguide directly in the frequency domain with special emphasis on the phase response. A detailed theory of the feasibility and limitation of this technique is presented, and its optimisation for optical fibre measurement is discussed. A complete measurement system has been built and set to perform the measurement automatically under computer control. This system performs both frequency and time domain measurements to determine the transfer function and impulse response of optical fibre. The transfer function and impulse response of a 100m step-index fibre have been measured using a HeNe laser source (wavelength of 0.6328mum) upto a frequency of 550MHz, and those of a 900m graded-index fibre up to a frequency of 1275MHz using a cw laser diode (wavelength of 0.87mum), using both techniques. The contribution of different sources of error in both measurement methods is also examined. Finally the relative advantages as well as disadvantages of the two measurement techniques are discussed.