Temperature-compensated optical grating device
AssigneeCorning Incorporated
InventorsDavid S. Franzen, Walter L. Morgan, Jackson P. Trentelman
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An improved temperature-compensated optical grating device includes a temperature-compensating structure including a plurality of members that are selected and arranged to provide an effective coefficient of thermal expansion that is negative with respect to two mounting points for an optical fiber grating, wherein the improvement is achieved by making at least one of the members of the temperature-compensating structure from a material having a low coefficient of thermal expansion that decreases with increasing temperature and at least one other member having a high coefficient of thermal expansion that increases with increasing temperature.
Claims40
A temperature-compensated optical fiber grating, comprising:
- an optical grating contained in an elongated section of an optical fiber;
- and
- a temperature-compensating structure including a plurality of temperature-compensating members connected together;
- a first temperature-compensating member connected to the optical fiber at a first point spaced away from one end of the fiber grating, a second temperature-compensating member connected to the optical fiber at a second point spaced away from another end of the fiber grating, at least one of the temperature-compensating members having a coefficient of thermal expansion that decreases with increasing temperature and which is lower than the coefficient of thermal expansion of at least one other temperature-compensating member, the temperature-compensating members arranged to have an effective coefficient of thermal expansion that is negative whereby the tensile strain on the portion of the optical fiber containing the fiber grating is reduced when the temperature is increased and the tensile strain on the portion of the optical fiber containing the fiber grating is increased when the temperature is decreased.
A temperature-compensated optical fiber grating, comprising:
- an optical grating contained in an elongated section of an optical fiber;
- and
- a temperature-compensating structure including a plurality of temperature-compensating members connected together, a first temperature-compensating member connected to the optical fiber at a first point spaced away from one end of the fiber grating, a second temperature-compensating member connected to the optical fiber at a second point spaced away from another end of the fiber grating, the temperature-compensating members being selected and configured to provide a variable effective coefficient of thermal expansion that decreases with increasing temperature.
A temperature-compensated optical fiber grating, comprising:
- an optical grating contained in an elongated section of an optical fiber;
- and
- a temperature-compensating structure including a plurality of temperature-compensating members connected together, a first temperature-compensating member connected to the optical fiber at a first point spaced away from one end of the fiber grating, a second temperature-compensating member connected to the optical fiber at a second point spaced away from another end of the fiber grating, at least one of said temperature-compensating members being made Invar®, and at least one other of the members being made of Alloy 42.
A method of temperature-compensating an optical grating contained in an elongated section of an optical fiber, comprising:
- providing an optical grating contained in an elongated section of an optical fiber;
- and
- attaching the section of the optical fiber containing the optical grating to a temperature-compensating structure including a plurality of temperature-compensating members connected together, wherein a first temperature-compensating member is connected to the optical fiber at a first point spaced away from one end of the fiber grating, a second temperature-compensating member is connected to the optical fiber at a second point spaced away from another end of the fiber grating, at least one of the temperature-compensating members having a coefficient of thermal expansion that decreases with increasing temperature and which is lower than the coefficient of thermal expansion of at least one other temperature-compensating member, the temperature-compensating members arranged to have an effective coefficient of thermal expansion that is negative whereby the tensile strain on the portion of the optical fiber containing the fiber grating is reduced when the temperature is increased and the tensile strain on the portion of the optical fiber containing the fiber grating is increased when the temperature is decreased.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.