The present invention relates to an optical fiber holding apparatus and
the like, which has a structure for stably holding optical fibers with a
satisfactory force without interfering with other components even when
the apparatus is miniaturized. The optical fiber holding apparatus
includes a stage for loading a front-end portion of the optical fiber and
a lid section for sandwiching the optical fiber together with the stage.
The lid section is rotatably connected with one end of an arm, and a
fiber holding section is provided at the other end of the arm. The arm
extends along the loading direction of the optical fiber and has such a
length that the other end thereof is positioned outside of the lid
section. Owing to this arrangement, the optical fiber to be held is
pressed onto the stage at a further front-end side than the portion
sandwiched by the stage and the lid section. As a result, a buffering
space is ensured for avoiding interference with other components between
the lid section and the optical fiber end face.