Researchers have found another cutting-edge use for 3D printing , namely creating optical silica preforms to make fibers, simplifying their production and substantially reducing manufacturing costs.

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Optical fibers, of course, have many uses including – but far from limited to – the very infrastructure of ultrafast internet. So any savings that could be brought in on the manufacturing side will help with the rollout of speedy connections, and hopefully the pricing of them, too, when it comes to the consumer.

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This particular project is a collaboration between research teams drawn from multiple universities across the globe, including the University of Technology in Sydney, the University of New South Wales, and both Harbin Engineering University and Yanshan University in China. As The Engineer reports , John Canning, who heads up the Sydney-based team, commented: “Making silica optical fibre involves the labour-intensive process of spinning tubes on a lathe, which requires […]

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