Optical module

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9335495-B2
Application number	US-201314085866-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 21, 2013
Priority date	Mar 8, 2013
Publication date	May 10, 2016
Grant date	May 10, 2016

Abstract

An optical modulator includes: laser diodes disposed in parallel with each other, each laser diode having a different lasing wavelength; optical waveguides disposed in parallel with each other with first ends facing the laser diodes; an optical isolator inserted between the laser diodes and the optical waveguides and attenuating return light reflected from the optical waveguides toward the laser diodes; a lens focusing light emitted from the laser diodes onto the optical waveguides through the optical isolator; an optical switch selecting one of the light beams exiting from the optical waveguides; and an optical modulator modulating the light beam selected by and output from the optical switch.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An optical module comprising:
a plurality of laser diodes disposed in parallel with each other, each laser diode having a different lasing wavelength;
a plurality of optical waveguides having first and second ends and disposed in parallel with each other, with the first end of each optical waveguide facing the laser diodes, wherein light from the laser diodes exits from the second ends of the optical waveguides as light beams;
an optical isolator inserted between the laser diodes and the optical waveguides and attenuating return light reflected from the optical waveguides toward the laser diodes;
a lens focusing light emitted from the laser diodes onto the optical waveguides through the optical isolator;
an optical switch selecting one of the light beams exiting the second ends of the optical waveguides and outputting the light beam selected;
an optical modulator modulating the light beam selected and output from the optical switch; and
a wavelength monitor for monitoring wavelength of the light beam output from the optical switch, wherein the wavelength monitor is monolithically integrated with the optical modulator.

2. The optical module according to claim 1 , wherein the optical switch includes a plurality of staged interferometers.

3. The optical module according to claim 1 , wherein the optical switch and the optical modulator are monolithically integrated.

4. The optical module according to claim 1 , wherein the wavelength monitor includes a ring resonator inserted between the optical switch and the optical modulator.

5. The optical module according to claim 1 , further comprising a control unit selectively turning on only one of the laser diodes and controlling the optical switch to select the light emitted from the laser diode that is turned on.

Assignees

• Mitsubishi Electric Corp

Inventors

• Hatta Tatsuo
• Itamoto Hiromitsu

Classifications

• G02B6/4206

  Optical features (G02B6/4207, G02B6/421 take precedence) · CPC title

• G02B6/4265

  of the Butterfly or dual inline package [DIP] type · CPC title

• G02B6/4286

  Optical modules with optical power monitoring · CPC title

• G02B6/4249

  comprising arrays of active devices and fibres · CPC title

• G02B6/4208 Primary

  using non-reciprocal elements or birefringent plates, i.e. quasi-isolators (optical isolators per se G02F1/093, G02F1/0955) · CPC title