Integrated optical coupler and connector

Abstract

There is disclosed an optical fiber coupler made from three separate ferrules formed from a continuous glass capillary tube having a capillary bore of suitable diameter for receiving optical fibers. The three ferrules include first and second end ferrules and a middle ferrule, the middle ferrule having a removed window portion exposing a portion of its capillary bore and two ferrule coupling ends on both sides of the removed window portion. An optical fiber is mounted in the capillary bore of the middle ferrule, and a beamsplitter is inserted in the optical fiber at a position exposed by the removed window portion. In addition, an optical element is coupled to the window portion of the middle ferrule so as to be in optical communication with the beamsplitter means. Finally, the coupler is completed by coupling alignment sleeves that couple and align the two ferrule coupling ends of the middle ferrule to the first and second end ferrules when optical fibers are mounted in the first and second ferrules.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.