Light steering apparatus and system including the light steering apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10754222-B2
Application number	US-201816190912-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 14, 2018
Priority date	Jun 20, 2018
Publication date	Aug 25, 2020
Grant date	Aug 25, 2020

Abstract

A light steering apparatus is provided including a tunable laser source and a system including the light steering apparatus. The light steering apparatus includes the tunable laser source and a steering device. A plurality of laser beams having optical coherence with each other and output from the tunable laser source are incident onto the steering device, and the steering device includes a plurality of modulation units for beam steering.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A light steering apparatus comprising:
a tunable laser source configured to output a plurality of optically coherent laser beams, the tunable laser source comprising a first waveguide and a second waveguide, the first waveguide comprising a first side and a second side, and the second waveguide comprising a first side, adjacent to the first side of the first waveguide, and a second side, adjacent to the second side of the first waveguide; and
a steering device on which the plurality of optically coherent laser beams, output from the tunable laser source, are incident, the steering device comprising a plurality of modulation units configured to beam steer the plurality of optically coherent laser beams,
wherein the plurality of optically coherent laser beams comprises a first laser beam output from the first side of the first waveguide and a second laser beam output from the second side of the second waveguide, and the first laser beam and the second laser beam have a time-independent phase difference with respect to each other, and
wherein the light steering apparatus further comprises a phase difference compensation device configured to compensate for the time-independent phase difference between the first laser beam and the second laser beam.

2. The light steering apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a plurality of input/output connection structures connecting the tunable laser source to the steering device, each of the plurality of input/output connection structures corresponding to one of the plurality of optically coherent laser beams.

3. The light steering apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the tunable laser source comprises:
a first ring resonator disposed between the first waveguide and the second waveguide; and
a second ring resonator disposed between the first waveguide and the second waveguide and spaced apart from the first ring resonator.

4. The light steering apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the tunable laser source further comprises an optical amplifier on at least one of the first waveguide and the second waveguide.

5. The light steering apparatus of claim 4 , wherein each of the first ring resonator and the second ring resonator comprises a ring waveguide and a modulator.

6. The light steering apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the modulator comprises one of:
a heating element configured to heat the ring waveguide,
an electro-optic element configured to change a charge density of the ring waveguide by applying a current around the ring waveguide, and
a piezoelectric element configured to change a refractive index of the ring waveguide, or a material surrounding the ring waveguide, according to application of a voltage.

7. The light steering apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the tunable laser source further comprises:
a first output port at the first side of the first waveguide, a second output port at the second side of the first waveguide, a third output port at the first side of the second waveguide, and a fourth output port at the second side of the second waveguide.

8. The light steering apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the steering device comprises a third waveguide, connected to the first side of the first waveguide, on which the first laser beam is incident; and a fourth waveguide, connected to the second side of the second waveguide, on which the second laser beam is incident.

9. The light steering apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the first waveguide and the third waveguide are integrally formed, and the second waveguide and the fourth waveguide are integrally formed.

10. The light steering apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the steering device further comprises a splitter configured to split the third waveguide into a plurality of third waveguides and a splitter configured to split the fourth waveguide into a plurality of fourth waveguides.

11. The light steering apparatus of claim 10 , wherein one of the plurality of modulation units is configured to modulate a phase of a beam that pass through each of the plurality of third waveguides and the plurality of fourth waveguides.

12. The light steering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the phase difference compensation device is provided on at least one of a path of the first laser beam and a path of the second laser beam and the phase difference compensation device is further configured to apply an electrical signal corresponding to the time-independent phase difference between the first laser beam and the second laser beam.

13. The light steering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the plurality of modulation units is configured to apply an electrical signal corresponding to the time-independent phase difference between the first laser beam and the second laser beam.

14. The light steering apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the steering device comprises a plurality of light output portions arranged in a one-dimensional array.

15. A system comprising:
a tunable laser source configured to output a plurality of optically coherent laser beams, the tunable laser source comprising a first waveguide and a second waveguide, the first waveguide comprising a first side and a second side, and the second waveguide comprising a first side, adjacent to the first side of the first waveguide, and a second side, adjacent to the second side of the first waveguide;
a steering device on which the plurality of optically coherent laser beams, output from the tunable laser source, are incident, the steering device comprising a plurality of modulation units configured to beam steer the plurality of optically coherent laser beams; and
a detection unit configured to detect a beam steered by the steering device,
wherein the plurality of optically coherent laser beams comprises a first laser beam output from the first side of the first waveguide and a second laser beam output from the second side of the second waveguide, and the first laser beam and the second laser beam have a time-independent phase difference with respect to each other, and
wherein the system further comprises a phase difference compensation device configured to compensate for the time-independent phase difference between the first laser beam and the second laser beam.

16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the tunable laser source comprises:
a first ring resonator disposed between the first waveguide and the second waveguide;
a second ring resonator disposed between the first waveguide and the second waveguide and spaced apart from the first ring resonator; and
an optical amplifier provided on at least one of the first waveguide and the second waveguide.

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Shin Changgyun
• Shin Dongjae
• Shim Dongsik
• Lee Changbum

Classifications

• H01S3/063

  Waveguide lasers, {i.e. whereby the dimensions of the waveguide are of the order of the light wavelength (waveguide gas lasers H01S3/0315)} · CPC title

• H01S3/0071 Primary

  Beam steering, e.g. whereby a mirror outside the cavity is present to change the beam direction · CPC title

• H01S3/0014

  Monitoring arrangements not otherwise provided for (photometry G01J1/00, e.g. G01J1/4257; radiation pyrometry G01J5/00; measuring coherence of light G01J9/00; measuring wavelength of light G01J9/00, e.g. G01J9/0246; measuring optical pulses G01J11/00; calorimetrically measuring power of laser beams G01K17/003) · CPC title

• H01S5/142 Primary

  which comprises an additional resonator · CPC title

• G02F1/2955 Primary

  by controlled diffraction or phased-array beam steering (controlled diffraction for optical waveguide switching G02F1/313) · CPC title