As demand for customized specialty fibers grows, standardized production methods face challenges. This article reviews industry standards and discusses potentially disruptive techniques that enable rapid prototyping and fabrication of optical fiber devices. Furthermore, we showcase laser powder deposition's (LPD) potential for additive manufacturing (AM) of customized glass structures. In the case of, for example, fiber preforms, although the feasible size is smaller than the industry standard, utilizing laser-based manufacturing techniques for a small batch production presents an attractive avenue for rapid prototyping and expedites material and design optimization. In the realm of AM of glass, LPD offers numerous benefits, including minimal shrinkage, high densification, and the ability to tailor glass composition to achieve desired optical properties. The article reviews the latest achievements and highlights future directions in this technology.

中文翻译：

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特种光纤激光制造技术的进步

随着定制特种纤维需求的增长，标准化生产方法面临挑战。本文回顾了行业标准，并讨论了实现光纤设备快速原型设计和制造的潜在颠覆性技术。此外，我们还展示了激光粉末沉积 (LPD) 在定制玻璃结构增材制造 (AM) 方面的潜力。例如，就光纤预制棒而言，尽管可行的尺寸小于行业标准，但利用基于激光的制造技术进行小批量生产为快速原型制作提供了一条有吸引力的途径，并加快了材料和设计优化。在玻璃增材制造领域，LPD 具有众多优势，包括最小收缩、高致密化以及能够定制玻璃成分以实现所需的光学性能。本文回顾了该技术的最新成果并强调了该技术的未来方向。