All-optical logic with wired-OR multi-mode-interference combiners and semiconductor-optical-amplifier inverters
US6462865B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 29, 2001 |
| Grant date | Oct 8, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 29, 2021 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG02F2203/70
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A novel semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) can operate as an optical inverter as well as a power-restoring device. Together, an optical-OR and the optical inverter can provide a wide variety of high speed optical logic gates and functions. The optical inverter uses cross-gain modulation (XGM) to invert a modulated signal on a first input, to produce an inverted output. The inverse of the modulation is transferred from a first wavelength of the modulated first input to a second wavelength of a continuous-wave second input. A filter can then block the first wavelength, allowing the inversely-modulated second wavelength to be output as the inverted output. The first and second wavelengths are swapped in alternate inverters in a logic path. The Y-junction can be implemented as a Multi-Mode Interference (MMI) device.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.