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US 6,122,416 AGranted
Stacked thermo-optic switch, switch matrix and add-drop multiplexer having the stacked thermo-optic switch
AssigneeNippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
InventorsNaoki Ooba, Takashi Kurihara, Toshio Watanabe
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Cores of an optical waveguide forming a Y-branch structured thermo-optic switch are stacked in a direction perpendicular to a substrate, and a heater is disposed on a clad right above an area where the cores overlap, thereby utilizing a large temperature gradient by the heater in the direction perpendicular to the substrate. The resulting stacked thermo-optic switch is low in power consumption and signal loss and high in extinction ratio.
Claims17
A stacked thermo-optic switch, comprising:
- a clad;
- a substrate;
- a plurality of cores extending in a direction perpendicular to the substrate, one of the cores coupling to another one of the cores:
- via at least one contact surface of the respective cores, or
- via a gap layer of the clad, the gap layer being provided between the cores, having a predetermined thickness,
- wherein one of the cores overlaps another one of the cores in a predetermined area to switch an optical path, the optical path being switched by inducing a thermo-optic refractive index change in the vicinity of the predetermined area;
- and
- a heater heating the cores and lying above a vicinity of the predetermined area, wherein at least a portion of the clad is situated between the heater and the cores.
5 more elements
A switch matrix, comprising:
- a plurality of stacked thermo-optic switches, each including:
- a clad,
- a substrate,
- a plurality of cores extending in a direction perpendicular to the substrate, one of the cores coupling to another one of the cores:
- via at least one contact surface of the respective cores, or
- via a gap layer of the clad, the gap layer being provided between the cores, having a predetermined thickness,
- wherein the cores include lower cores and at least one upper core, the lower and upper cores overlapping with each other in a predetermined area to switch an optical path, the optical path being switched by inducing a thermo-optic refractive index change in the vicinity of the predetermined area, and a heater heating the cores and lying above a vicinity of the predetermined area, wherein at least a portion of the clad is situated between the heater and the cores,
- wherein the lower cores include a first number of glass-based optical waveguides not crossing each other, and the at least one upper core includes a second number of polymer-based optical waveguides, and
- wherein the stacked thermo-optic switches are constructed at a part positioned substantially at the predetermined area.
6 more elements
A switch matrix unit, comprising:
- a plurality of stacked thermo-optic switches, each including:
- a clad,
- a substrate,
- a plurality of cores extending in a direction perpendicular to the substrate, one of the cores coupling to another one of the cores:
- via at least one contact surface of the respective cores, or
- via a gap layer of the clad, the gap layer being provided between the cores, having a predetermined thickness,
- wherein the cores include lower cores and at least one upper core, the lower and upper cores overlapping with each other in a predetermined area to switch an optical path, the optical path being switched by inducing a thermo-optic refractive index change in the vicinity of the predetermined area, and a heater heating the cores and lying above a vicinity of the predetermined area, wherein at least a portion of the clad is situated between the heater and the cores,
- wherein the lower cores include a first number of glass-based optical waveguides crossing each other, and the at least one upper core includes a second number of polymer-based optical waveguides, and
- wherein the stacked thermo-optic switches are constructed at a part positioned substantially at the predetermined area.
6 more elements
A switch matrix, comprising:
- at least one stacked thermo-optic switch including:
- a clad,
- a substrate,
- a plurality of cores extending in a direction perpendicular to the substrate, one of the cores coupling to another one of the cores:
- via at least one contact surface of the respective cores, or
- via a gap layer of the clad, the gap layer being provided between the cores, having a predetermined thickness,
- wherein the cores include at least one lower glass core and at least one upper polymer core, the lower and upper cores overlapping with each other in a predetermined area to switch an optical path, the optical path being switched by inducing a thermo-optic refractive index change in the vicinity of the predetermined area, and
- a heater heating the cores and lying above a vicinity of the predetermined area, wherein at least a portion of the clad is situated between the heater and the cores,
- wherein the at least one lower core includes a plurality of glass-based reticulate crossed optical waveguides which form a lower-core crossing, and
- wherein the at least one upper polymer core connects a first upper core of a first further stacked thermo-optic switch situated at one arm of the lower-core crossing to a second upper core of a second further stacked thermo-optic switch situated at another arm of the lower-core crossing.
7 more elements
An optical add-drop multiplexer, comprising:
- a plurality of switch matrix unit including:
- a stacked thermo-optic switches each including:
- a clad,
- a substrate,
- a plurality of cores extending in a direction perpendicular to the substrate, one of the cores coupling to another one of the cores:
- via at least one contact surface of the respective cores, or
- via a gap layer of the clad, the gap layer being provided between the cores, having a predetermined thickness,
- wherein the cores include lower cores and at least one upper core, the lower and upper cores overlapping with each other in a predetermined area to switch an optical path, the optical path being switched by inducing a thermo-optic refractive index change in the vicinity of the predetermined area, and a heater heating the cores and lying above a vicinity of the predetermined area, wherein at least a portion of the clad is situated between the heater and the cores;
- a wavelength division multiplexer;
- and
- a wavelength division de-multiplexer connected to the wavelength division multiplexer via the switch matrix unit,
- wherein the lower cores include a first number of glass-based optical waveguides not crossing each other, and the at least one upper core includes a second number of polymer-based optical waveguides, and
- wherein the stacked thermo-optic switches are constructed at a part substantially at the predetermined area.
10 more elements
An optical add-drop multiplexer, comprising:
- a switch matrix including:
- at least one stacked thermo-optic switch, including:
- a clad,
- a substrate,
- a plurality of cores extending in a direction perpendicular to the substrate, one of the cores coupling to another one of the cores:
- via at least one contact surface of the respective cores, or
- via a gap layer of the clad, the gap layer being provided between the cores, having a predetermined thickness,
- wherein the cores include at least one lower glass core and at least one upper polymer core, the lower and upper cores overlapping with each other in a predetermined area to switch an optical path, the optical path being switched by inducing a thermo-optic refractive index change in the vicinity of the predetermined area, and
- a heater heating the cores and lying above a vicinity of the predetermined area, wherein at least a portion of the clad is situated between the heater and the cores;
- a wavelength division multiplexer;
- and
- a wavelength division de-multiplexer connected to the wavelength division multiplexer via the switch matrix,
- wherein the at least one lower core includes a plurality of glass-based reticulate crossed optical waveguides which form a lower-core crossing, and
- wherein the at least one upper polymer core connects a first upper core of a first further stacked thermo-optic switch situated at one arm of the lower-core crossing to a second upper core of a second further stacked thermo-optic switch situated at another arm of the lower-core crossing.
11 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.