Devices for monitoring, switching, attenuating or distributing light
AssigneeBell Telephone Laboratories, Incorporated
InventorRichard E. Wagner
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An access port, a basic building block for optical devices, is formed by joining the ends of two fibers. Each fiber has a wedge-shaped end portion with two planar sides. One planar side of one end portion is held against one planar side of the other end portion. The other planar side of each end portion controls transmission of light from the first fiber to the second fiber. Optical devices for monitoring, switching, attenuating or distributing the light transmitted through the first fiber advantageously use the access port.
Claims20
A device comprising
- a first fiber having a first longitudinal center axis and a first wedge-shaped end portion with two planar sides, each planar side of the first end portion intersecting the first center axis at an acute angle,
- a second fiber having a second longitudinal center axis and a second wedge-shaped end portion with two planar sides, each planar side of the second end portion intersecting the second center axis at an acute angle, and
- means for holding one planar side of the first end portion against one planar side of the second end portion, so that the first center axis intersects the second center axis.
A device comprising
- a first fiber having a first wedge-shaped end portion with two planar sides intersecting in a first line,
- a second fiber having a second wedge-shaped end portion with two planar sides intersecting in a second line, and
- means for holding one of the planar sides of the first end portion against one of the planar sides of the second end portion, the first and second lines being substantially parallel and adjacent to each other.
A device comprising
- a first fiber having a first planar surface positioned at an acute angle with respect to a longitudinal axis of the first fiber,
- a second fiber having a second planar surface positioned at an acute angle with respect to a longitudinal axis of the second fiber,
- means for holding the first planar surface against the second planar surface, and
- the first and second fibers having a common third planar surface positioned at an acute angle with respect to the longitudinal axes of the first and second fibers.
A device comprising
- first and second access ports,
- the first access port including first and second fibers joined and forming a first optical boundary,
- the second access port including third and fourth fibers joined and forming a second optical boundary,
- a refractive index matching material disposed on the first optical boundary, and
- means for moving the second optical boundary with respect to the index matching material.
A device comprising
- first and second access ports,
- the first access port including first and second multimode fibers joined and forming a first optical boundary,
- the second access port including a third multimode fiber and a single mode fiber joined and forming a second optical boundary, the single mode fiber having a core, and
- a spot of reflective film placed on the second optical boundary at a position intersecting with the core of the single mode fiber extended.
An optical device for coupling light between a pair of optical fibers,
- each fiber having a wedge-shaped end portion with two planar sides, one planar side of one end portion being joined to one planar side of the other end portion and the second planar side of each end portion forming a common planar optical boundary, the device being characterized by
- a partially reflective metallic film disposed on the common planar optical boundary and the common planar optical boundary being substantially mode insensitive to whatever light is coupled between the fibers.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.