Method of aligning optical fibers to a multi-port optical assembly
US6118910A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | May 19, 1998 |
| Grant date | Sep 12, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 19, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG02F1/31
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A method of assembling an optical device for coupling optical fibers to a corresponding number of input/output ports of a stack of optical elements includes utilizing at least one controllable multi-state optical element to selectively switch the optical coupling among the ports. The controllable multi-state element is one element within a stack of polarization-manipulating elements having a configuration that allows the condition of the multi-state element or elements to dictate the optical coupling among the ports. In the preferred embodiment, the multi-state element is a Faraday rotator. The method may be used in either or both of a quality control application or a fiber-to-port alignment application. In the quality control operation, the stack of polarization-manipulating elements is tested to verify proper operation with respect to separating and selectively recombining polarization components of input beams. In the fiber-to-port alignment application, the fibers on the same side of the stack are first fixed in a parallel relationship with a known center-to-center distance that is equal to the center-to-center distance between corresponding ports of the stack. By optically ali…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.