Optical switch using Risley prisms
AssigneeSandia Corporation
InventorsWilliam C. Sweatt, Todd R. Christenson
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An optical switch using Risley prisms and rotary microactuators to independently rotate the wedge prisms of each Risley prism pair is disclosed. The optical switch comprises an array of input Risley prism pairs that selectively redirect light beams from a plurality of input ports to an array of output Risley prism pairs that similarly direct the light beams to a plurality of output ports. Each wedge prism of each Risley prism pair can be independently rotated by a variable-reluctance stepping rotary microactuator that is fabricated by a multi-layer LIGA process. Each wedge prism can be formed integral to the annular rotor of the rotary microactuator by a DXRL process.
Claims12
An optical switch, comprising:
- a plurality of input Risley prism pairs for accepting a plurality of light beams into the optical switch, with each input Risley prism pair comprising a first wedge prism and a second wedge prism located about an input optical axis and with the first and second wedge prisms being independently rotatable about the input optical axis;
- a plurality of output Risley prism pairs, with each output Risley prism pair comprising a third wedge prism and a fourth wedge prism located about an output optical axis and with the third and fourth wedge prisms being independently rotatable about the output optical axis;
- a plurality of input rotary microactuators for independently rotating the first and second wedge prisms of each input Risley prism pair about the input optical axis to redirect each light beam to a selected output Risley prism pair;
- and
- a plurality of output rotary microactuators for independently rotating the third and fourth wedge prisms of each output Risley prism pair about the output optical axis to direct each light beam out of the optical switch.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.