Techniques for generation of high brightness beams using a ridge waveguide
AssigneeAeva, Inc.
InventorsMazin Alalusi, Pradeep Srinivasan, Kevin Masuda
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Abstract
A light detection and ranging apparatus (LIDAR) includes an optical source to generate an optical beam and one or more waveguides to steer the optical beam. The one or more waveguides include a first cladding layer having a first refractive index and a second cladding layer disposed below the first cladding layer, the second cladding layer having second refractive indexes including a range of different refractive indexes, wherein the range of different refractive indexes is greater than the first refractive index of the first cladding layer.
Claims20
A light detection and ranging apparatus (LIDAR), comprising:
- one or more waveguides, coupled to an optical source, to steer an optical beam, the one or more waveguides comprising:
- a first cladding layer having a first refractive index;
- a second cladding layer comprising a single layer disposed below the first cladding layer and above a substrate, the second cladding layer comprising a plurality of second refractive indexes that steer the optical beam towards the substrate, the plurality of second refractive indexes comprising a range of different refractive indexes, wherein the range of different refractive indexes is greater than the first refractive index of the first cladding layer;
- and
- a ridge waveguide (RWG), wherein the first cladding layer comprises a conductive ridge having a RWG width smaller than the second cladding layer.
A method comprising:
- receiving, by a waveguide, an optical beam from an optical source of a light detection and ranging (LIDAR) system, the waveguide comprising a first cladding layer having a first refractive index and a second cladding layer comprising a single layer disposed below the first cladding layer, the second cladding layer comprising a plurality of second refractive indexes that steer the optical beam towards a substrate, the plurality of second refractive indexes comprising a range of different refractive indexes, wherein the range of different refractive indexes is greater than the first refractive index of the first cladding layer;
- and
- propagating the optical beam using the range of different refractive indexes of the waveguide to expand an optical mode of the optical beam,
- wherein the first cladding layer comprises a conductive ridge of a ridge waveguide (RWG) having a RWG width smaller than the second cladding layer.
A light detection and ranging (LIDAR) system, comprising:
- one or more waveguides, coupled to an optical source, to steer an optical beam, the one or more waveguides comprising:
- a first cladding layer having a first refractive index;
- a second cladding layer comprising a single layer disposed below the first cladding layer and above a substrate, the second cladding layer comprising a plurality of second refractive indexes that steer the optical beam towards the substrate, the plurality of second refractive indexes comprising a range of different refractive indexes, wherein the range of different refractive indexes is greater than the first refractive index of the first cladding layer;
- and
- a ridge waveguide (RWG), wherein the first cladding layer comprises a conductive ridge having a RWG width smaller than the second cladding layer, and the second cladding layer is comprised of indium gallium arsenide phosphide (InGaAsP) or indium gallium aluminum arsenide (InGaAlAs).
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.