Resonant optical wave power control devices and methods

An optical power control device, comprising:

• a continuous length of optical wave power propagating member characterized by guided wave evanescent field extending outside the member for a portion of the member;
• at least one high Q optical wave recirculating device having a peripheral surface within the evanescent field of the member and exchanging wave power therewith, and
• a wave power control in association with the at least one recirculating device for controlling the round trip loss at the recirculating device to vary the wave power returned to the wave power propagating member from the resonator relative to the critical coupling condition in the overcoupled regime.

An optical wave transmission control for in-line variation of power transmission on an optical waveguide comprising:

• a low loss optical wave power recirculating device having a periphery adjacent to the optical waveguide in a relation to couple wave power therefrom, the recirculating device also returning wave power to the optical waveguide, and
• a variable coupling device exterior to but operating with the recirculating device for varying the power returned to the optical waveguide from the recirculating device to vary power transmission on the optical waveguide without introducing discontinuities into the waveguide, the variable coupling device introducing losses per circulation round trip to establish critical coupling of a previously overcoupled resonator.

The method of modulating optical power within a tapered fiber optical waveguide comprising the steps of:

• coupling at least some transmitted power from the waveguide into at least one recirculating wave power path resonant at least one frequency,
• coupling recirculating power back to the optical waveguide, and
• removing a controlled amount of power from the at least one recirculating path to modulate optical power transmission along the waveguide.

A modulator for use with an optical fiber transmission system, comprising:

• an optical fiber having a narrow waist providing exterior waveguided power thereabout, the wave power having a selected nominal frequency;
• an optical resonator disposed in close proximity to the waist in communication with the exterior waveguided energy, the resonator being configured to be resonant at the selected nominal frequency and the communication with the waist including power return to the fiber, and wherein the resonator comprises a whispering galleon mode device comprising an element having an equatorial periphery in which the recirculating energy is confined with an extended but guided distribution outside the periphery, and
• loss control means in communication with the recirculating resonator, for introducing a loss to thereby establish critical coupling of a previously overcoupled resonator.

Apparatus for controlling power transmission of combinations of a number of different optical frequencies on an optical waveguide comprising:

• a waveguide capable of propagating the different frequencies and characterized by at least one coupling section having field propagation partially outside the surface of the waveguide;
• a plurality of whispering gallery mode resonators disposed adjacent the coupling section of the waveguide and coupled thereto, each resonator having a resonant mode at a different one of the optical frequencies and each coupling back to the waveguide, and
• a plurality of means, each coupled to a different one of the resonators, for independently varying the round trip loss in the overcoupled regime in at least one resonator to vary signals at that frequency returned to the waveguide such as to separately switch off that frequency on command.

A system for generating and controlling multiple optical signals of different wavelengths on a single optical waveguide capable of propagating multiple wavelengths within a chosen bandwidth, comprising:

• an optical waveguide having at least two integral lengths with partially external distributions of guided wave power, the optical waveguide also including at least two in-waveguide optical power sources operating at different wavelengths in the chosen bandwidth;
• at least two optical resonators, each being resonant at a different one of the wavelengths in the chosen bandwidth and each being disposed in coupling relation to a different integral length of the optical waveguide and coupled thereto, and
• a control system optically coupled to each of the resonators for controlling power loss thereat in the overcoupled regime in as least one resonator, whereby propagated power at different wavelengths is separately controlled in the single optical waveguide.

A system for controlling the amplitude level of optical signals of a chosen wavelength transmitted along a waveguiding element with undefined polarization comprising:

• a coupling length of the wave guiding element which is dimensioned and configured to establish a partially exterior distribution of guided wave power;
• a pair of resonators of the whispering gallery mode type disposed along the coupling length of the waveguiding element in coupling from and to the exterior distributed wave power, the resonators being orthogonally disposed relative to the propagation axis of the coupling length and resonant at the chosen wavelength, and
• loss control means associated with each of the resonators for introducing controllable loss in the wave power recirculated at the resonators, such that the propagated signals are controlled regardless of their polarization.

A system for controllably varying the signal transmission in an optical waveguide without transitions in a coupling to the waveguide itself, comprising:

• an optical waveguide having an integral coupling section therein in which an exterior portion of waveguided energy extends into the surrounding environment, the waveguide being selected from the class including optical fibers and optical planar waveguides;
• a dielectric optical microcavity member supporting at least one mode internally at at least one resonant frequency, the microcavity member protruding into the extending waveguided energy and coupling optical waves partially from and back into the waveguide, wherein the microcavity member is selected from the class comprising microspheres, discs, loops, and rings of circular and non-circular geometry, and
• means associated with the microcavity member for introducing round trip loss in an overcoupled condition into the supported mode and thereby varying the signal transmission in the optical waveguide widely for relatively small loss changes.