Tuneable awg device for multiplexing and demultiplexing signals and method for tuning said device

A method for tuning a tunable AWG device for multiplexing and demultiplexing signals, the method comprising:

• providing one or more input ports consisting of optical waveguides,
• providing a plurality of output ports consisting of optical waveguides,
• providing a first optical coupler for optical input port mixing,
• providing a second optical coupler for the mixing and output of optical output ports,
• providing a set of optical waveguides with increasing lengths connecting the first optical coupler with the second optical coupler so as to enable the multiplexing/demultiplexing of signals transmitted,
• providing a support adapted for surface acoustic wave transmission for the acoustic excitation of either:
• either a set of optical waveguides connecting the first and second optical coupler these being sorted by increasing length, or
• the optical waveguides of the input ports;
• the excitable waveguides being spaced apart on the support,
• wherein a standing acoustic excitation is provided on the support adapted for transmitting surface acoustic waves such that the acoustic standing wave is transverse to the guides arranged on the support and both the configuration of the acoustic wave and the spatial distribution of the acoustically excited guides are such that the acoustic wave discretized in points of the cross section of the acoustically excited optical waveguides is linearized.

A method of spectral band interspersion between two lines carrying the respective signals S1 and S2, each carrying two tributary signals multiplexed in time with a base bit rate Tb;

• said spectral band interspersion being carried out using a tunable AWG device, said tunable AWG device comprising two optical input ports and two optical output ports, wherein:
• the tunable AWG device has a cyclical design,
• the acoustic excitation produces a displacement in wavelength equal to the free spectral range, and
• an acoustic wave (SAW) is generated that excites the AWG in a triangular form such that fsaw=1/Tb wherein fsaw is the fundamental frequency of the acoustic wave to result in a temporal switch place wherein one tributary signals multiplexed in the signal S1 is exchanged for another tributary signal of the signal S2.