Thermally wavelength tunable laser having selectively activated gratings

A wavelength tunable laser comprising:

• a gain means with an active emission section that generates light;
• a wavelength including a core, the core optically coupled to the active emission section for receiving light;
• more than one periodic arrangement adjacent to the core, each periodic arrangement having a period;
• a substrate supporting the waveguide and the gain means, the substrate including an index loading region adjacent to each periodic arrangement;
• thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement, each periodic arrangement and adjacent thermo-optical material having the same refractive index when both the periodic arrangement and the adjacent thermo-optical material are at an off temperature;
• and
• temperature changing means in the thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement wherein, at a reference temperature, the product of the period associated with each periodic arrangement and an effective refractive index of an optical mode as the optical mode propagates by each periodic arrangement is different for each periodic arrangement.

A wavelength tunable laser comprising:

• a gain means with an active emission section that generate light;
• a wavelength including a core, the core optically coupled to the active emission section for receiving light;
• a substrate supporting the waveguide and the gain means;
• more than one periodic arrangement adjacent to the core, each periodic arrangement having a different period;
• thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement, each periodic arrangement and adjacent thermo-optical material having the same refractive index when both the periodic arrangement and the adjacent thermo-optical material are at an off temperature;
• and
• temperature changing means in the thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement whereby, as the temperature of the thermo-optical material adjacent to a chosen periodic arrangement changes to a temperature other than the off temperature, the refractive index of the thermo-optical material adjacent to the chosen periodic arrangement differs from the refractive index of the chosen periodic arrangement which creates a diffraction grating whose pitch is equal to the period of the chosen periodic arrangement.

A wavelength tunable laser comprising:

• a gain means with an active emission section that generates light;
• a waveguide including a core, the core optically coupled to the active emission section for receiving light;
• more than one periodic arrangement adjacent to the core, each periodic arrangement having a period;
• a substrate supporting the waveguide and the gain means, the substrate including an index loading region adjacent to each periodic arrangement;
• thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement, each periodic arrangement and adjacent thermo-optical material having the same refractive index when both the periodic arrangement and the adjacent thermo-optical material are at an off temperature;
• and
• temperature changing means in the thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement wherein, at a reference temperature, the product of the period associated with each periodic arrangement and an effective refractive index of an optical mode as the optical mode propagates by each periodic arrangement is different for each periodic arrangement and whereby, as the temperature of the thermo-optical material adjacent to a chosen periodic arrangement changes to a temperature other than the off temperature, the refractive index of the thermo-optical material adjacent to the chosen periodic arrangement differs from the refractive index of the chosen periodic arrangement which creates a diffraction grating whose pitch is equal to the period of the chosen periodic arrangement.

A wavelength tunable filter comprising:

• a waveguide including a core;
• a substrate supporting the waveguide;
• more than one periodic arrangement adjacent to the core, each periodic arrangement having a different period;
• thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement, each periodic arrangement and adjacent thermo-optical material having the same refractive index when both the periodic arrangement and the adjacent thermo-optical material are at an off temperature;
• and
• temperature changing means in the thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement.

A wavelength tunable filter comprising:

• a waveguide including a core;
• more than one periodic arrangement adjacent to the core, each periodic arrangement having a period;
• a substrate supporting the waveguide, the substrate including an index loading region adjacent to each periodic arrangement;
• thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement, each periodic arrangement and adjacent thermo-optical material having the same refractive index when both the periodic arrangement and the adjacent thermo-optical material are at an off temperature;
• and
• temperature changing means in the thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement wherein, at a reference temperature, the product of the period associated with each periodic arrangement and an effective refractive index of an optical mode as the optical mode propagates by each periodic arrangement is different from each periodic arrangement.

A wavelength tunable filter comprising:

• a waveguide including a core;
• a substrate supporting the waveguide;
• more than one periodic arrangement adjacent to the core, each periodic arrangement having a different period;
• thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement, each periodic arrangement and adjacent thermo-optical material having the same refractive index when both the periodic arrangement and the adjacent thermo-optical material are at an off temperature;
• and
• temperature changing means in the thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement whereby, as the temperature of the thermo-optical material adjacent to a chosen periodic arrangement changes to a temperature other than the off temperature, the refractive index of the thermo-optical material adjacent to the chosen periodic arrangement differs from the refractive index of the chosen periodic arrangement which creates a diffraction grating whose pitch is equal to the period of the chosen periodic arrangement.

A wavelength tunable filter comprising:

• a waveguide including a core;
• more than one periodic arrangement adjacent to the core, each periodic arrangement having a period;
• a substrate supporting the waveguide, the substrate including an index loading region adjacent to each periodic arrangement;
• thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement, each periodic arrangement and adjacent thermo-optical material having the same refractive index when both the periodic arrangement and the adjacent thermo-optical material are at an off temperature;
• and
• temperature changing means in the thermo-optical material adjacent to each periodic arrangement wherein, at a reference temperature, the product of the period associated with each periodic arrangement and an effective refractive index of an optical mode as the optical mode propagates by each periodic arrangement is different for each periodic arrangement and whereby, as the temperature of the thermo-optical material adjacent to a chosen periodic arrangement changes to a temperature other than the off temperature, the refractive index of the thermo-optical material adjacent to the chosen periodic arrangement differs from the refractive index of the chosen periodic arrangement which creates a diffraction grating whose pitch is equal to the period of the chosen periodic arrangement.