Polarization insensitive colorless optical devices

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10756516-B2
Application number	US-201916561635-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 5, 2019
Priority date	Jun 28, 2013
Publication date	Aug 25, 2020
Grant date	Aug 25, 2020

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention describe polarization insensitive optical devices utilizing polarization sensitive components. Light comprising at least one polarization state is received, and embodiments of the invention select a first optical path for light comprising a first polarization state or a second optical path for light comprising a second polarization state orthogonal to the first polarization state. The optical paths include components to at least amplify and/or modulate light comprising the first polarization state; the second optical path includes a polarization rotator to rotate light comprising the second polarization state to the first polarization state. Embodiments of the invention further describe optical devices including a polarization mode converter to convert light comprising a first and a second polarization state to light comprising different spatial modes of the first polarization state; light comprising the different spatial modes of the first polarization state is subsequently amplified and modulated.

First claim

What is claimed:

1. A method for modulating light using a photonic integrated circuit, the method comprising:
receiving, using an optical coupler of the photonic integrated circuit, a first light in a first polarization state and a second light in a second polarization state;
changing the second light to the first polarization state;
directing the first light and the second light along one or more optical paths;
modulating, with an optical modulator, the first light and the second light while the first light and the second light are in the first polarization state; and
reflecting, with the optical modulator, the modulated first light and the modulated second light onto the one or more optical paths while the modulated first light and the modulated second light are in the first polarization state.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the optical coupler that receives the first light and the second light changes the second light to the first polarization state.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the optical coupler is a grating coupler.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein an optical rotator receives the second light from the optical coupler in the second polarization state, and wherein the optical rotator changes the second light into the first polarization state.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more optical paths comprises a first optical path and a second optical path.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the first light is directed down the first optical path and the second light is directed along the second optical path.

7. The method of claim 6 , further comprising:
amplifying, using a first optical amplifier on the first path, the first light while the first light is in the first polarization state; and
amplifying, using a second optical amplifier on the second optical path, the second light while the second light is in the first polarization state.

8. The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
measuring, using a photodiode of the photonic integrated circuit, a light intensity of at least one of the first light, the modulated first light, the second light, or the modulated second light to produce a photocurrent; and
controlling at least one of the first optical amplifier or the second optical amplifier based on the photocurrent.

9. The method of claim 6 , wherein the modulated first light is reflected on onto the first path and the modulated second light is reflected on the second path.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more optical paths is a single optical path, and wherein the optical modulator reflects the modulated first light and the modulated second light onto the single optical path.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the optical coupler receives the first light and the second light as a combined light, and wherein the optical coupler splits the combined light into the first light and the second light based on the first light being in the first polarization state and the second light being in the second polarization state.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising:
receiving, using the optical coupler, the combined light from an optical path interface.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the optical path interface is an optical fiber.

14. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
combining, using the optical coupler, the modulated first light and the modulated second light into modulated exiting light.

15. The method of claim 14 , further comprising:
directing, using the optical coupler, the modulated exiting light onto the optical path interface from which the combined light was received.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein changing the second light from the second polarization state to the first polarization state comprises rotating a plane of polarization of the second light by ninety degrees.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the modulated first light and the modulated second light comprise data.

18. A photonic integrated circuit comprising:
one or more optical couplers configured to receive a first light in a first polarization state and a second light in a second polarization state, the one or more optical couplers further configured to change the second light to the first polarization state;
one or more optical paths to direct the first light and the second light while the first light and the second light are in the first polarization state; and
an optical modulator configured to receive the first light and the second light from the one or more optical paths while the first light and the second light are in the first polarization state, the optical modulator further configured to modulate the received first light and the second light while the first light and the second light are in the first polarization state, the optical modulator further configured to reflect the modulated first light and the modulated second light onto the one or more optical paths while the modulated first light and the modulated second light are in the first polarization state.

19. The photonic integrated circuit of claim 18 , wherein the one or more optical couplers is a grating coupler configured to receive an input light from a fiber and split the input light into the first light and the second light, and wherein the grating coupler is configured to change the second light from the second polarization state to the first polarization state.

20. The photonic integrated circuit of claim 18 , wherein the one or more optical couplers comprise an optical splitter and an optical rotator, wherein the optical splitter is configured to receive an input light from a fiber and split the input light into the first light and the second light, and wherein the optical rotator is configured to change the second light from the second polarization state to the first polarization state.

Assignees

• Aurrion Inc

Inventors

• Fish Gregory Alan
• Norberg Erik Johan
• Garcia John M
• Guzzon Robert Silvio
• Sparacin Daniel Knight

Classifications

• H04J14/02

  Wavelength-division multiplex systems · CPC title

• H01S5/005

  Optical components external to the laser cavity, specially adapted therefor, e.g. for homogenisation or merging of the beams or for manipulating laser pulses, e.g. pulse shaping (H01S5/026, H01S5/18388 take precedence) · CPC title

• H01S5/5009

  the arrangement being polarisation-insensitive · CPC title

• H01S5/5018 Primary

  using two or more amplifiers or multiple passes through the same amplifier · CPC title

• G02B6/2793

  Controlling polarisation dependent loss, e.g. polarisation insensitivity, reducing the change in polarisation degree of the output light even if the input polarisation state fluctuates · CPC title