One reason to use optical fibers to transmit data is for isolation from unintended electrical energy. Using fiber optics in
an application where the fiber cable/system penetrates the aperture of a grounded enclosure serves two purposes: first, it
allows for control signals to be transmitted where they are required, and second, the insulating properties of the fiber
system help to electrically isolate the fiber terminations on the inside of the grounded enclosure. A fundamental question
is whether fiber optic cables can allow electrical energy to pass through a grounded enclosure, with a lightning strike
representing an extreme but very important case. A DC test bed capable of producing voltages up to 200 kV was used to
characterize electrical properties of a variety of fiber optic cable samples. Leakage current in the samples were measured
with a micro-Ammeter. In addition to the leakage current measurements, samples were also tested to DC voltage
breakdown. After the fiber optic cables samples were tested with DC methods, they were tested under representative
lightning conditions at the Sandia Lightning Simulator (SLS). Simulated lightning currents of 30 kA and 200 kA were
selected for this test series. This paper documents measurement methods and test results for DC high voltage and
simulated lightning tests performed at the Sandia Lightning Simulator on fiber optic cables. The tests performed at the
SLS evaluated whether electrical energy can be conducted inside or along the surface of a fiber optic cable into a
grounded enclosure under representative lightning conditions.
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