Optical switch

US4365862A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Public Corporation · JP

Inventors

• Hiroshi Terui · Mito, JP
• Morio Kobayashi · Oyama, JP

Key dates

• Filing date: Jan 5, 1981
• Grant date: Dec 28, 1982
• Expiry date: Jan 5, 2001

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G02B6/3596
• WIPO field: Optics
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

An optical switch comprising a substrate with a refractive index n.sub.1 which is transparent with respect to a guided light beam, an optical waveguide film with a refractive index n.sub.2 which is formed on the substrate, a low-refractive-index region with a refractive index n.sub.2 ' which is smaller by a predetermined value than the refractive index n.sub.2 formed at a predetermined location in the optical waveguide film, a movable dielectric chip with a refractive index n.sub.4 which is transparent with respect to the guided light beam and a relative distance of which is adjustable relative to a plane including the low-refractive-index region and a vicinal area of the optical waveguide film in the vicinity of the region, and an intermediate layer with a refractive index n.sub.3 disposed between the plane and the movable dielectric chip wherein the refractive indices n.sub.1, n.sub.2, n.sub.2 ', n.sub.3 and n.sub.4 have a relationship of n.sub.2 >n.sub.2 '>n.sub.4 >(n.sub.1, n.sub.3), and effective refractive indices of the optical waveguide film and the low-refractive-index region are varied by changing a distance between the plane and the movable dielectric chip, so that guide…