Tension Monitor - THORLABS Vytran GPX3400 User Manual

GPX3400 and GPX3600 Glass Processors Chapter 5: Operation

5.7.5. Tension Monitor

The Tension Monitoring System is series included with all Vytran glass processors to provide feedback on the
taper process.
At system turn on, the tension monitor (shown in Figure 18) needs to be zeroed to ensure proper reading of
tension being applied to the fiber. This is done by opening the Tension Monitor (View>Tension Monitor), ensuring
no tension is applied to the desired fiber holding block(Right or Left) and clicking on "Zero" in the Tension Monitor
window. Utilizing the Tension Monitor, the user can pre-load a tension to the fiber before the taper process, and
then use the feedback to modify the taper properties if needed.
As an example, a standard 400 to 200 um taper should be pre-tensioned to approximately 20 g. This is typically
done by moving the left fiber holding block to the left using the motor control bar using fine steps. Once the taper
process is run, if the tension drops down to 0 or negative values; the start power should be decreased because
the glass has been over softened or melted. If the tension goes very high, increase the start power because the
glass is not softened enough.
Figure 18 Tension Monitor
Rev B, July 24, 2017 Page 39