Fused biconical tapered fiber-optic devices: Application to data buses

Abstract

The technology of fiber-optic couplers based on fused biconical tapered structures is reviewed, and the linear and star data-bus configurations that can be constructed using these couplers are discussed. A useful network topology for interconnecting star couplers using the hybrid transmission-reflection star coupler is also proposed. This network configuration has the advantage of requiring significantly less optical fiber than networks employing a single transmission or reflection star.     

Semi-Analytical Simulation of Titanium-Indiffused Lithium Niobate–Integrated Optic Directional Couplers Consisting of Curved Waveguides

Integrated optic directional couplers consisting of curved waveguides are simulated analytically by solving the Riccati equation. The coupling coefficient between the curved waveguides with a parabolically varying gap and the condition of total power transfer between the waveguides are derived. In order to compute the overall coupling coefficient and hence the power distribution along the waveguides for Ti:LiNbO ₃ curved waveguide directional couplers, the coupling coefficient for straight waveguide couplers is computed for different gaps using the effective-index-based matrix method (EIMM). Finally, the power distribution in the curved waveguides along the length is computed. The method is mostly analytical except the effective-index method and is computationally simple.     

Experimental Measurement of Fused Fiber Coupler and M-Z Interferometer Performance as WDM Devices

Abstract

An experimental study of the WDM response of fused fiber couplers and an M-Z interferometer is presented. The WDM practical implementation limits of single fused fiber couplers, along with fiber tapering measurements, were obtained. Mach-Zehnder interferometric devices based on fused fiber couplers were included in this work in order to surpass the single coupler's WDM limitations and widen the operation range of the analyzed fused fiber devices.     

Theory of nonlinear directional couplers

A method is proposed for obtaining exact analytical solutions for the system of nonlinear equations for the propagation of electromagnetic waves in directional couplers with an arbitrary nonlinearity in the propagation constant. The resulting solutions can be used to determine the operating characteristics of nonlinear directional couplers. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 69, 69–71 (August 1999)     

4 × 4 Plastic Optical Fiber Star Coupler Incorporated with a Common Polymer Waveguide Optical Power Distribution Region

Abstract

Two types of 4 × 4 plastic optical fiber star couplers incorporated with a polymer waveguide as the optical power distributor are proposed, and their high performances are demonstrated. The characteristics of the proposed star coupler are investigated based on ray optics, and its power distribution performance is evaluated in terms of the flatness of the coupling ratio and the amount of the excess loss. Under the best conditions, the flatness of the coupling ratio and the excess loss of the fabricated device have been obtained as 2.0 dB and 2.5 dB, respectively.     

Bilinearization of Coupled Nonlinear Schrödinger Type Equations: Integrabilty and Solitons

Abstract

Considering the coupled envelope equations in nonlinear couplers, the question of integrability is attempted. It is explicitly shown that Hirota’s bilinear method is one of the simple and alternative techniques to Painlevé analysis to obtain the integrability conditions of the coupled nonlinear Schrödinger (CNLS) type equations. We also show that the coupled Hirota equation introduced by Tasgal and Potasek is the next hierarchy of the inverse scattering solvable CNLS equation. The results are in agreement with the known results.     

Acoustooptic 2×2 switch for radiation with different wavelengths as an element of a fiber-optic gyroscope

Planar acoustooptic 2×2 directional couplers that switch optical rays with different wavelengths are considered. A method for calculating the angular and frequency characteristics of such switches is developed, and the parameters of a switch based on a planar Ti-LiNbO₃ structure are calculated. Experiments employing bulk acoustooptic diffraction in TeO₂ are performed, confirming the basic theoretical assumptions. It is shown experimentally that the best conditions for switching optical rays directed into optical fibers can be provided nearly always by varying the diffraction angles and the frequencies of the sound waves. The functional possibilities of the 2×2 directional coupler investigated in a fiber-optic gyroscope are described. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 67, 57–62 (July 1997)     

Analysis of the scattering and guidance of a two-dimensionally periodic metal grating structure by spectral domain method

The scattering and guidance of electromagnetic waves from a two-dimensionally (2D) periodic metal grating structure are investigated here. With the spectral domain analysis the dispersion characteristics for this structure are obtained. Properly taking into account the hybrid mode nature of the propagation problem the effects of mode coupling betweenTE andTM modes are examined. Numerical results will provide us valuable information for the design of new devices in 2D periodic structure, particularly in millimeter-wave frequency range, such as antennas, filters, couplers and distributed reflectors.     

Crosstalk in a bidirectional optical fiber

Abstract

Full-duplex communications in a single optical fiber is both feasible and practical in certain applications. The main problem is crosstalk between the two directions. This paper reviews the sources of crosstalk, gives its magnitude, and describes techniques to reduce crosstalk. An example is a system that requires 75 optical dB of isolation between transmitted and received signals at each terminal. There are two sources of optical crosstalk. The first occurs in components such as couplers and connectors and can be held below 50 dB by careful design. The second is Rayleigh scattering within the fiber, which increases system noise as well as crosstalk between counterdirectional signals.     

A review of biconical taper couplers

Abstract

An optical coupler distributes light from a main fiber to one or more branch fibers. Optical signals can also be passed bidirectionally along a single fiber [1]. Usually couplers are passive devices which are attached to other components in a system by means of optical fiber connectors, or may be joined to them by splicing. Several basic coupler designs have been discussed in the literature, each having some advantages and disadvantages. The biconical taper coupler [2] consists of two fibers that are fused and subsequently tapered. These fibers may have step or graded index profiles. Beam-splitter types [3] (consisting of discrete components) are generally expensive. Mixing rods are simple and can be ruggedly constructed, but an extra 3dB loss above packing fraction loss is incurred when used with graded index fibers [4].     

Logic Gates Based in Asymmetric Couplers: Numerical Analysis

Abstract

In this work, we present a numerical investigation of the transmission and switching of fundamental solitons in asymmetric nonlinear directional couplers, constructed with dispersion decreasing fibers (DDF). In this configuration, the coupler consists of two separated parallel fibers, one with a DDF profile and the other with a constant profile. We obtained the characteristics of transmission, extinction ratio, and compression factor of the device.

The truth tables for the logic gates AND, OR, and XOR were obtained. We concluded that the device presenting a constant profile provided the best performance of the studied logic gates. Logic gates AND, OR, and XOR operating with extinction coefficient around 16.6 dB were obtained.     

Adjustment of the coupling ratio by laser ablation of Ti:LiNbO3 directional couplers

The coupling ratio of directional couplers in Z-cut Y-propagation and X-cut Z-propagation LiNbO₃ crystals was adjusted by laser ablation. The coupling ratio change is more efficient for the TM-mode of Z-cut couplers. The method can be used to correct the uncertainty of the coupling ratio for directional couplers that occurs during fabrication process.     

Design and Simulation of Broadband Beam Splitter on a Silicon Nitride Platform for Optical Coherence Tomography

ABSTRACT

Integrated photonics enables the miniaturization of bulk optical components for biosensing applications such as optical coherence tomography (OCT) and is therefore promising for future lab-on-chip solutions. Here, we report the design and simulation of a compact low loss broadband beam splitter with arbitrary coupling ratios on silicon nitride platform for OCT systems. The reported coupler uses asymmetric waveguide-based phase control section for 10:90, 20:80, 30:70, 40:60, and 50:50 splitting ratios and is broadband over 100 nm with the central wavelength of 850 nm. The couplers are realized for transverse electric, transverse magnetic, and fully vectorial modes, and maximum excess loss for all mode types is reported to be less than 0.19 dB. The design tolerance of waveguide width and thickness of the designed coupler is further calculated and is within fabrication limit.     

Simplified Approach for Optimizing Optical Asymmetric Curved Waveguides of Broadband Directional Couplers

ABSTRACT

Optical broadband directional couplers (BDCs) are indispensable components for providing wavelength-insensitive and flexible optical splitting in the construction of functional photonic integrated circuits (PICs). The existing BDC device structures are usually required to determine specific design parameters for different waveguide structures and operating wavelength bands. To circumvent this dilemma, here we present a novel optimization procedure to realize a compact BDC by using the asymmetric curved waveguide structure. The versatile particle swarm optimization (PSO) technique is adopted to determine the optimal device parameters of the compact and broadband asymmetric curved directional couplers (ACDCs) for different coupling ratios. In order to reduce the computational complexity in the optimization, the 3D ACDC is first converted to an equivalent 2D structure by using the modified effective index method (MEIM). The device parameters of the equivalent 2D ACDC are optimized by the PSO with the objective function of a wavelength flattened coupling ratio. Afterward, the optimized 2D structure is converted to the 3D one by including the waveguide thickness. To cope with the approximation error by the MEIM, the 3D ACDC is further fine-tuned by sweeping one of the device parameters with the full 3D simulation but keeping all of the other optimal parameters obtained from the PSO intact. As a result, a DC with broad bandwidth of 100 nm is obtained over the wavelength range from 1.50 µm to 1.60 µm with a very small coupling length of 6 µm. The semi-optimized ACDC is used to construct an unbalanced Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) and a Sagnac loop mirror (SLM), both of which show high extinction ratios of >25 dB over a broad wavelength range with low excess loss.     

Power splitting ratio couplers based on MMI structures with high bandwidth and large tolerance using silicon waveguides

We show that it is possible to obtain 2 × 2 couplers based on multimode interference (MMI) structures with nineteen new power-splitting ratios by cascading three or four MMI couplers. The other aim of this study is to use silicon waveguides, that are compatible with the existing CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor) fabrication technology, for designing the proposed devices. The proposed MMI couplers with new power splitting ratios have simple geometries and low losses. These MMI couplers can offer valuable new possibilities for designing MMI waveguide-based photonic integrated circuits such as all-optical interconnects, microring resonators, clock distribution, Mach Zehnder Interferometer based on MMI couplers and other all-optical processing applications. The transfer matrix method (TMM) and modified effective index method (MEIM) along with the support of the 3D Beam Propagation Method (3D BPM) are used to optimize the proposed devices.     

Grating couplers for thick SOI rib waveguides

The use of grating couplers in high index contrast waveguides like silicon on insulator (SOI) offers several advantages over other coupling approaches, including better alignment tolerances and allowing for wafer-scale testing. The grating couplers were developed for nanometric SOI waveguides (Si-wires), and recently also for micrometric rib waveguides. In this paper we review our work in fiber-to-chip grating couplers for thick SOI rib waveguides, where a coupling efficiency of ?2.2?dB was demonstrated experimentally. We also discuss the use of grating couplers to improve optical throughput (étendue) of a planar waveguide Fourier-Transform (FT) spectrometer implemented in thick rib waveguides.     

Optimal designing of grating couplers for diffused waveguides in electro-optical crystals

Grating couplers for electro-optical diffused waveguides (such as Ti:LiNbO₃, Ti:LiTaO₃, etc.) are examined theoretically. A comparison of the improvements resulting from groove deepening, grating metallization, covering and multicovering of waveguide corrugation is made. Expressions for the calculation of the optimum parameters for multicovering are given and the method for optimization of the parameters is presented. It is shown that high-efficiency couplers for diffused electro-optical waveguides can be made using corrugations no longer than 1 mm and no deeper than 10 nm. A numerical illustration is presented to demonstrate the usefulness of the method for the improvement of other grating devices (distributed Bragg reflector, thin-film grating coupler).     

Repetition rate multiplication in figure-eight fibre laser with 3 dB couplers

The operation of a passively modelocked figure-eight laser with all fibre repetition rate multiplier is reported. Thirty two times the fundamental repetition rate is achieved with six conventional 3 dB couplers at a repetition rate of 182 MHz. The repetition rate 2^N times multiplication only requires (N + 1) passive fibre couplers and N fibre delay-lines. This method makes it possible to achieve high multiplication and is inexpensive when compared with conventional methods employing sub-ring cavity or special fibre Bragg grating to control repetition rate.     

Mode selective directional couplers for overmoded waveguide systems

Two types of directional couplers for transverse electric (TE) modes are described: short and multihole couplers, respectively. They selectively pick one mode out of a mode mixture in an overmoded circular waveguide system. Unwanted modes are either statistically kept at low level or are suppressed by destructive interference in the coupling waveguide. Mode selectivity and directivity in multihole couplers oscillate up and down with an increasing number of holes, finally reaching a minimum of approximately 20 dB, unless there are competing modes with rational fractions of the beat wavelength. A multihole coupler for the TE₀₂ mode (28 GHz, 63.4 mm waveguide diameter, 41 holes) and a length of 1.6 m shows a calculated directivity of 68 dB and suppresses the unwanted modes TE₀₁ with 34 dB (24 dB), TE₂₂ with 37 dB (45 dB), and further modes TE_m (<5, m<6) with 17 dB to 34 dB in forward direction (figures in parentheses are for unwanted modes propagating in backward direction).A short directional coupler for the TE₀₁ mode (28 GHz, 63.4 mm waveguide diameter) with 16 holes and a length of 230 mm shows a directivity of 55 to 100 dB between 27.9 and 28.1 GHz, suppressing the TE₀₂ mode with 35 to 80 dB, the TE₀₃ mode with 30 to 65 dB, and the TE₂₂ mode with 30 to 70 dB.     

Single and multi-section CTL and branch-line CPW directional couplers with broadband performances for SIMMWIC

Single and multisection branch-line and coupled transmission line (CTL) directional couplers have been implemented in coplanar waveguide (CPW)-technology, showing broadband performances. The branch-line and CTL couplers had a phase balance of ±5° and a power variation of 1.5 dB in the coupling over a bandwidth of greater than 25% and 75% respectively. The experimental values for the couplers were found to agree well with simulated results. The CPW couplers provide larger bandwidth than comparable microstrip couplers. Investigation on different feeding structure for the branch-line couplers is also presented.