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US 4,786,131 AGranted
Star coupler
AssigneePolaroid Corporation
InventorsAmaresh Mahapatra, James M. Connors
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An M.times.N coupler uses a planar waveguide to couple each of M input channel waveguides to each of N output channel waveguides, the input guides and the output guides being disposed on opposite sides of the planar waveguide. Uniformity of coupling is improved by joining the input channel waveguides to the planar waveguide in a manner to focus the beams emitted by each input guide into the planar waveguide at a common focal point located near the center of the edge where the output guides join the planar waveguide.
Claims8
An M.times.N optical waveguide coupler comprising:
- a planar waveguide having a pair of opposed edges that serve as entrance and exit facets for introducing and extracting electromagnetic radiation from said waveguide, said waveguide being structured to confine radiation propagating therein in a single mode in its depth without confining it in its width so that, in its width, radiation propagates as an expanding wavefront as it travels further along said waveguide;
- at least one (M) single mode channel waveguide optically coupled to said input facet of said planar waveguide for introducing radiation into said planar waveguide to travel across said planar waveguide toward said exit facet thereof as a single mode in the depth of said planar waveguide and as an expanding wavefront in the width thereof;
- and
- an array of (N) single mode channel waveguides optically coupled to said exit facet of said planar waveguide at spaced apart widthwise locations therealong to receive predetermined amounts of energy from the expanding wavefront of the input radiation.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.