End finishing of plastic optical fibers using laser ablation

The present invention relates to the utilization of plastic optical fiber, and, more particularly, to the finishing of an end of a plastic optical fiber for insertion into an optical connector. Finishing an end of a plastic optical fiber by ablating the end of the plastic optical fiber by utilizing an Excimer laser so that the end of the optical fiber can be used in a optical connector. A high powered ultraviolet beam of light from the laser is absorbed by the end of the fiber and ablates the first few microns of the end face of the fiber. This process removes residual cracks and fissures to flatten the end of the fiber for use in the optical connector. The optical fiber is then ready to make a low loss interface with a source, a detector, or another optical fiber.