What is needed to get low loss from a connector?

• A. Good Stripping Technique
• B. Good Cleave
• C. Gentle Crimp
• D. Proper Cable Type

Answer: (B)

Low loss at a connector comes from a precise, cleanly cut end-face on the fiber, produced by a good cleave. A high-quality cleave yields a flat, smooth end surface that is close to perpendicular to the fiber axis, allowing two fibers to contact evenly and minimising gaps, scattering, and back reflections. When the cleave is rough or nicked, the contact is imperfect, which increases insertion loss and can make performance unstable. Stripping technique helps prevent damage to the coating and keeps the fiber intact, but it doesn’t determine the end-face geometry that directly controls connector loss. Proper crimp mainly affects mechanical hold, not the optical loss at the junction, and selecting the correct cable type is about compatibility, not the immediate end-face quality that governs loss.