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US 3,957,343 AGranted
Optical communications systems
AssigneeThe Post Office
InventorsRichard Burnaby Dyott, John Leslie Stevenson
Life of this patent
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AssigneeThe Post Office
InventorsRichard Burnaby Dyott, John Leslie Stevenson
Estimating the term…
Energy propagating in a dielectric optical waveguide may be transferred from one mode of propagation to another by inducing a spatially undulatory variation in refractive index in the core of the dielectric optical waveguide. Such a variation may be induced by an electro-static field. The electro-static field may be directed either longitudinally of, or transversely of the dielectric optical waveguide. A suitably periodic electro-static field may be generated by positioning a suitable electrode structure about the dielectric optical waveguide. For certain applications it may be desirable to arrange for the spatial period of the electro-static field to vary in a random manner. By arranging for propagating modes to couple to non-propagating modes an optical modulator may be produced.
A mode coupler for transferring energy between different modes of propagation in a dielectric optical waveguide having a core of homogeneous phase and a cladding comprising:
A mode coupler for transferring energy between different modes of propagation in a dielectric optical waveguide, comprising a section of dielectric optical waveguide having a core of homogeneous phase and a cladding having a plate electrode disposed tangentially adjacent a surface of said section of dielectric optical waveguide and externally of said cladding, a plurality of strip electrodes disposed tangentially adjacent said surface of said section of dielectric optical waveguide and externally of said cladding in a serial array along said section of dielectric optical waveguide, each of said strip electrodes disposed axially transverse of said section of dielectric optical waveguide and diametrically opposite said plate electrode, said plurality of strip electrodes electrically isolated from said plate electrode.
A mode coupler for transferring energy between different modes of propagation in a dielectric optical waveguide comprising a section of dielectric optical waveguide having a core of homogeneous phase and a cladding a first group and a second group of strip electrodes disposed tangentially adjacent said surface of said section of dielectric optical waveguide and externally of said cladding in serial arrays along said section of dielectric optical waveguide, each of said strip electrodes disposed axially transverse of said section of dielectric optical waveguide, each strip electrode of said first group disposed diametrically opposite with respect to said dielectric optical waveguide, a strip electrode of said second group, and said first group of strip electrodes electrically isolated from said second group of strip electrodes.
A mode coupler for transferring energy between different modes of propagation in a dielectric optical waveguide comprising a section of dielectric optical waveguide having a core of homogeneous phase, a plurality of ring electrodes arranged in a serial array axially of said section of dielectric optical waveguide, each ring electrode disposed circumjacent a surface of said section of dielectric optical waveguide and externally of said cladding.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.