OPTICAL FIBER AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SAME

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical fiber which can simultaneously materialize suppression of bending loss due to vacancy and prevention of liquid from entering the vacancy and which therefore has wide applicability, and also to provide a manufacturing method of the optical fiber. SOLUTION: The optical fiber 10 includes a core part 21 and a clad part 22 surrounding the circumference of the core part 21 and having, in addition, three or more vacancies 24 continuous in the longitudinal direction of the optical fiber 10 in the clad part 22. The optical fiber 10 is structured such that a void region 23 including a plurality of longitudinally disconnected voids 25 exists in the entirety or part of the vacancies 24. In of the manufacturing method of the optical fiber, three or more vacancies are provided in an optical fiber base material continuously in the longitudinal direction and, after a foamable glass material or porous glass is packed in the entirety or part of the vacancies, the optical fiber base material is processed for line drawing. COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT