US4799749A
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US
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Integrated resonator matrix for wavelength-selective separation or joining of channels in the frequency domain of optical communications technology
Assignee: Siemens AG
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Filing: 1986-02-25
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Granted: 1989-01-24
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Expires: 2006-02-25
Abstract
Abstract Integrated resonator matrix for wavelength-selective separation or joining of channels in the frequency domain of optical communications technology. Arrangement of optical resonators which are composed of dielectric waveguides which are mirrored at their ends predominantly with reflectors having high reflection factors close to the value one and whose longitudinal extent between the reflectors is great in comparison to the transverse dimensions perpendicular thereto, all optical resonators are integrated such on a substrate to form a matrix-like arrangement, referred to as resonator matrix. Two types of resonators can be distinguished, whereby the resonators of the first type are highly coupled to one another and act as coupled resonators (22, 221, 222), whereas the resonators of the second type act as wavelength-selective useful resonators (23, 231, 232) and, compared to the couplings between the resonators of the first type, are weakly coupled to one another or, respectively, to the resonators of the first type and form at least two useful resonator groups which are not coupled to one another (or are coupled to one another as little as possible) whereby a useful resonator group contains one or more useful resonators.
Inventors
- 👤 Manfred Borner
- 👤 Reinhard Muller
- 👤 Gert Trommer
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-28 12:40
CPC Classifications
G; G02; G02F; G02F1/00; G02F1/01; G02F1/011; G02B; G02B6/00; G02B6/10; G02B6/12; G02B6/12002; G02B6/12004
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 51
Claim 1
Independent Claim
170 words
Arrangement of optical resonators which are composed of dielectric waveguides which are mirrored at their ends predominantly with reflectors having high reflection factors close to the value one and whose longitudinal extent between the reflectors is great in comparison to the transverse dimensions perpendicular thereto, characterized in that all optical resonators are integrated on a substrate to form a matrix-like arrangement, referred to as resonator matrix, being integrated such that two types of resonators can be distinguished, whereby the resonators of the first type are highly coupled to one another and act as coupled resonators (22, 221, 222), whereas the resonators of the second type act as wavelength-selective useful resonators (23, 231, 232) and, in comparison to the couplings between the resonators of the first type, are weakly coupled to one another or, respectively, to the resonators of the first type and form at least two useful resonator groups which are coupled to one another as little as possible, whereby a useful resonator group contains one or more useful resonators.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
170 words
Arrangement of optical resonators which are composed of dielectric waveguides which are mirrored at their ends predominantly with reflectors having high reflection factors close to the value one and whose longitudinal extent between the reflectors is great in comparison to the transverse dimensions perpendicular thereto, characterized in that all optical resonators are integrated on a substrate to form a matrix-like arrangement, referred to as resonator matrix, being integrated such that two types of resonators can be distinguished, whereby the resonators of the first type are highly coupled to one another and act as coupled resonators (22, 221, 222), whereas the resonators of the second type act as wavelength-selective useful resonators (23, 231, 232) and, in comparison to the couplings between the resonators of the first type, are weakly coupled to one another or, respectively, to the resonators of the first type and form at least two useful resonator groups which are coupled to one another as little as possible, whereby a useful resonator group contains one or more useful resonators.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
20 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that all resonators have their longitudinal axes essentially parallel to one another.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
165 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1 characterized in that all optical resonators are integrated essentially parallel in at least two planes on a substrate, being integrated to form a matrix-like arrangement, whereby the resonators of at least one level are predominantly highly coupled to one another and thus act as coupled resonators (22, 221, 222), at most with the exception of a number of resonators at one and/or the other end of the coupled resonator level which can function as useful resonators (23, 231, 232), and whereby the resonators of at least one other level which is at least nearly parallel to the coupled resonator level are not coupled to one another or, respectively, are coupled to one another as little as possible and, thus, act as wavelength-selective useful resonators (23, 231, 232) which are practically independent of one another, whereas the couplings between the resonators of two different levels are predominantly weak in comparison to the coupling of the coupled resonators to one another.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
26 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the optical signals are coupled in and coupled out via a single in-coupling and out-coupling waveguide (27).
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
42 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the optical signals are coupled in via a single in-coupling waveguide (25) and are coupled out in wavelength-selective fashion via a plurality of out-coupling waveguides (26) which are optimally uncoupled from one another.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
36 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the optical signals are coupled in via a plurality of in-coupling waveguides optimally uncoupled relative to one another and are coupled out via a single out-coupling waveguide.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
37 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that a broad band coupler is integrated on the same substrate, an additional wavelength band being capable of being coupled into an in-coupling waveguide (25) with the assistance thereof.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
21 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that all resonators of a level are either useful resonators or coupled resonators.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
14 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the substrate is a semiconductor.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
22 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the material of at least a part of the resonator matrix is glass-like.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
18 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 9 characterized in that electronic circuits are additionally integrated on the semiconductor substrate.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
23 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that further optical elements are integrated on the substrate, including further spatially separated resonator matrices.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
53 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one useful resonator is situated in the region of a pn-junction; and in that circuit means are provided which allow the properties of this useful resonator in the union of the resonator matrix to be made electrically accessible via the said pn-junction.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
27 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the material of at least one useful resonator comprises no absorption or, respectively, as little absorption as possible.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
33 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the material of at least one useful resonator comprises such an absorption as required for the effect of the absorption boost in a resonator.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
21 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the material of at least one useful resonator is a laser-capable substance.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
24 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the material of at least one part of the resonator matrix exhibits the electro-optical effect.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
35 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the substrate material is silicon; and in that the waveguide core regions having elevated refractive index are composed of a mixture Si x Ge 1-x .
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
37 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that connection electrodes belonging to useful resonators are connected such to one another that the electrical control signals for a plurality of resonators are applied to a common electrode.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
31 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the reflectors (28, 29) of the individual resonators are combined to form a common mirror at respectively one end of the resonators.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
30 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the resonators have mirrors at least at their respectively one end which are separated from the mirrors of the other resonators.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
33 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the reflection faces (28, 29) of the resonators which reside opposite one another form two surfaces arranged at a slant relative to one another.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
36 words
Resonator atrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the reflection faces (28, 29) of the resonators which reside opposite one another form two surfaces which are arranged as parallel as possible relative to one another.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
32 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one resonator, in comparison to the other resonators, comprises a different form of the refractive index curve over the cross section.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
34 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the waveguide side faces serving for light guidance are at least partially formed by surfaces (196) which have been produced by means of etching shafts.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
34 words
Resonator matrix according to claim 1, characterized in that the waveguide side faces serving for light guidance are at least partially formed by surfaces (196) which have been produced by anisotropic etching of shafts.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
20 words
The resonator matrix of claim 1, and further comprising: means for beaming modulated and unmodulated characters into the resonator matrix.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
33 words
The arrangement of claim 27, and further comprising: a plurality of output lines and a plurality of electronically controlled crosspoints for distributing the electrical output signals selectively to said plurality of output lines.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
28 words
The resonator matrix of claim 27, wherein: said means comprises and in-coupling waveguide for beaming the modulated and unmodulated carriers into the coupled resonators from two different sides.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
33 words
The arrangment of claim 27, wherein: said means comprises a signle in-coupling waveguide (25) for distributing the light into different waveguides (26) in a wavelength-selective manner by way of the useful resontaors (23).
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
27 words
The arrangement of claim 27, wherein: said means comprises a plurality of different n-coupling wave-guides; and an out coupling waveguide couples the light out of said arrangement.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
28 words
The arrangement of claim 30, wherein: a plurality of pn junctions are connected to receive electrical control signals for separating carriers modulated with information to various output lines.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
51 words
The arrangment of claim 32, wherein: at least one of the useful resonators comprises a characteristic such that its phase constant is controlled by a voltage applied to the appertaining pn junction, whereby the wavelength-selective modulation of the channel selected by the useful resonator occurs by way of electrical modulation signals.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
36 words
The arrangement of claim 33, and further comprising: co-integrated electrodes for varying the phase constant in response to a modulation voltage, whereby the wavelength-selective modulation of the channel selected occurs by way of electrical modulation signals.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
36 words
The arrangement of claim 34, wherein: at least one of said useful resonators is located in the region of a pn junction of a photodiode having a low absorption coeffcient for wavelength selective detection of radiation.
Claim 37
Dependent Claim
33 words
The arrangement of claim 34, wherein: at least one useful resonator is located in the region of a pn junction of a diode having laser-capable material for separate amplification of the wavelengths received.
Claim 38
Dependent Claim
180 words
The manufacture of a resonator arrangement of optical resonators which are composed of dielectric waveguides which are mirrored at their ends predominantly with reflectors having reflection factors close to the value one and whose longitudinal extent between the reflectors is great in comparison to the transverse dimensions perpendicular thereto, in which all optical resonators are integrated on a substrate to form a matrix-like arrangement referred to as a resonator materix, being integrated such that two types of resonators can be distringuished, whereby the resonators of the first type are highly coupled to one another and act as coupled resonators, the resonators of the second type act as wavelength-selective useful resonators, and, in comparison to the couplings between the resonators of the first type are weakly coupled and form at least two useful resonator groups which are coupled to one another as little as possible, whereby a useful resonator group contains at least one useful resonator, comprising the step of: applying a plurality of optical layers exhibiting different refraction for the reflectors of the individual resonators at at least one end.
Claim 39
Dependent Claim
180 words
The manufacture of a resonator arrangement of optical resonators which are composed of dielectric waveguides which are mirrored at their ends predominantly with reflectors having reflection factors close to the value one and whose longitudinal extent between the reflectors is great in comparison to the transverse dimensions perpendicular thereto, in which all optical resonators are integrated on a substrate to form a matrix-like arrangement referred to as a resonator materix, being integrated such that two types of resonators can be distringuished, whereby the resonators of the first type are highly coupled to one another and act as coupled resonators, the resonators of the second type act as wavelength-selective useful resonators, and, in comparison to the couplings between the resonators of the first type are weakly coupled and form at least two useful resonator groups which are coupled to one another as little as possible, whereby a useful resonator group contains at least one useful resonator, comprising the step of: applying a plurality of optical layers exhibiting different refraction for the reflectors of the individual resonators at at least one end.
Claim 40
Dependent Claim
25 words
Manufacture of a resonator matrix according to claim 37, characterized in that a plurality of planar layers having different refractive indices are applied by epitaxy.
Claim 41
Dependent Claim
34 words
Manufacture of a resonator matrix according to claim 37, characterized in that at least one waveguide core region (97) is produced in a shaft by means of epitaxy with materials having different refractive indices.
Claim 42
Dependent Claim
52 words
Manufacture of a resonator matrix according to claim 37, characterized in that at least one waveguide edge region arises in that shafts are filled with a material which exhibits a lower refractive index than the material of the waveguide core regions which are situated in the material between the shaft walls (196).
Claim 43
Dependent Claim
25 words
Manufacture of a resonator matrix according to claim 37, characterized in that at least one epitaxy step ensues by means of molecular beam epitaxy (MBE).
Claim 44
Dependent Claim
32 words
Manufacture of a resonator matrix according to claim 37, characterized in that holes (131) are etched, these comprising surfaces which are employed as end faces of the resonator matrix to be mirrored.
Claim 45
Dependent Claim
28 words
Manufacture of a resonator matrix according to claim 37, characterized in that an edge surface of the substrate is employed for the manufacture of at least one mirror.
Claim 46
Dependent Claim
161 words
Tuning of a resonator matrix of optical resonators which are composed of dielectric waveguides which are mirrored at their ends predominantly with reflectors having high reflection factors close to the value one and whose longitudinal extent between the reflectors is great in comparison to the transverse dimensions perpendicular thereto, in which all optical resonators are integrated on a substrate to form a resonator matrix, the resonators being integrated such taht two types of resonators can be distinguished, whereby the resonators of the first type are highly coupled to one another and act as coupled resonators, whereas the resonators of the second type act as wavelength selective useful resonators and, in comparison to the couplings between the resonators of the first type, are weakly coupled to form at last two useful resonator groups, whereby a useful resonator group contains at least one useful resonator, comprising the step of: modifying the optical length of the resonators by controlling the temperature of thermo-electro elements.
Claim 47
Dependent Claim
161 words
Tuning of a resonator matrix of optical resonators which are composed of dielectric waveguides which are mirrored at their ends predominantly with reflectors having high reflection factors close to the value one and whose longitudinal extent between the reflectors is great in comparison to the transverse dimensions perpendicular thereto, in which all optical resonators are integrated on a substrate to form a resonator matrix, the resonators being integrated such taht two types of resonators can be distinguished, whereby the resonators of the first type are highly coupled to one another and act as coupled resonators, whereas the resonators of the second type act as wavelength selective useful resonators and, in comparison to the couplings between the resonators of the first type, are weakly coupled to form at last two useful resonator groups, whereby a useful resonator group contains at least one useful resonator, comprising the step of: modifying the optical length of the resonators by controlling the temperature of thermo-electro elements.
Claim 48
Dependent Claim
47 words
Individual tuning of the individual resonators of a resonator matrix according to claim 44 characterized in that the effective refractive index (n eff ) of this resonator is controlled by means of injecting or extracting charge carriers by applying a variable electrical voltage to the appertaining pn-junction.
Claim 49
Dependent Claim
57 words
Individual tuning of the individual resonators of a resonator matrix according to claim 44, characterized in that, in at least one of the useful resonators, the refractive index and, thus, the phase constant of this useful resonator is controlled by means of the electrooptical effect, being controlled by means of a control voltage applied to co-integrated electrodes.
Claim 50
Dependent Claim
25 words
Tuning of a resonator matrix according to claim 44, wherein the step of modifying is further defined as: controlling the temperature of a piezo element.
Claim 51
Dependent Claim
25 words
Tuning of a resonator matrix according to claim 44, wherein the step of modifying is further defined as: controlling the temperature of a Peltier element.
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| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
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| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1992-01-24 | 1992-07-25 | 1993-01-24 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1996-01-24 | 1996-07-25 | 1997-01-24 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2000-01-24 | 2000-07-25 | 2001-01-24 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |