Passive fiber optic butt coupling using a semiconductor etched feature
US9971096B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 1, 2016 |
| Grant date | May 15, 2018 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 1, 2036 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG02B2006/121
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
Embodiments herein include an optical system that passively aligns a fiber array connector (FAC) to a waveguide in a photonic chip. A substrate of the FAC is machined or etched to include multiple grooves along a common axis or plane to hold optical waveguides, or more specifically, the fibers of the optical cables in the FAC. To align the fibers to the photonic chip, one of the fibers is disposed in an alignment trench which has a width that is substantially the same as the diameter of the fiber. When the fiber registers with the alignment trench, the fiber is aligned with a waveguide disposed at the end of the trench. Because the pitch between the fibers can be precisely controlled, aligning one of the fibers using the alignment trench results in the other fibers becoming passively aligned to respective waveguides in the photonic chip.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.