Compact Branched Optical Waveguides Using High-Index-Contrast Stacked Structure

We have developed a novel branched optical waveguide using a stacked directional coupler, which consists of two Si₃N₄ core layers (each 0.3 μm thick) stacked with a thin (0.2 μm) SiO₂ film in between. Using this stacked high-index-contrast system, the size of the multiple branched waveguides can be dramatically reduced compared with the conventional Y-shaped branches. A four-branch optical waveguide is designed and fabricated, and good performance of distribution power of 25 ± 4% to each branch has been achieved.