Texas Instruments Corporation

Adam Joseph Fruehling

Juan Alejandro Herbsommer

Benjamin Stassen Cook

Argyrios Dellis

Simon Joshua Jacobs

Bichoy Bahr

Swaminathan Sankaran

James Norman Hall

William Craig McDonald

Daniel Lee Revier

Lance W Barron

Ivan Kmecko

Arun Gupta

James Francis Hallas

Divyanshu Agrawal

Randy Long

Dishit Paresh Parekh

Scott Robert Summerfelt

Terry Alan Bartlett

Kurt Peter Wachtler

Arthur Monroe Turner

John Charles Ehmke

Patrick Ian Oden

Django Trombley

A method of aligning optical signals in a fiber optic switching device with one or two phase light modulators (PLMs) includes configuring the phase elements of the PLMs with first initial settings, to direct an optical signal from an input fiber to an output fiber. An initial position displacement of a center of the signal image from a center of the output fiber is estimated. Corrected settings for the phase elements are calculated so that when the corrected settings are applied to the phase elements, a corrected signal image of the optical signal has a corrected position displacement from the center of the output fiber that is less than the initial position displacement. A fiber optic switching device has processing circuitry and a memory component configured to execute steps of the method of aligning the optical signals.

Rapid fiber optic alignment techniques for optical switching

Described embodiments include a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) array comprising a first MEMS device that includes a first movable electrostatic plate elastically connected to a first structure, the first movable electrostatic plate having a first mass, a first fixed electrostatic plate, and a first drive circuit having a first drive output coupled to the first fixed electrostatic plate. There is a second MEMS device that includes a second movable electrostatic plate elastically connected to a second structure, the second movable electrostatic plate having a second mass that is different than the first mass, a second fixed electrostatic plate, and a second drive circuit having a second drive output coupled to the second fixed electrostatic plate.

Reduction of ringing and intermodulation distortion in a MEMS device

A phase light modulator includes a base plate, a mirror, a perforated hinge plate, and first second support posts. The perforated hinge plate supports the mirror. The perforated hinge plate has first and second flexural arms. The perforated hinge plate is configured to move toward or away from the base plate based on application of a potential difference between the base plate and the perforated hinge plate. The first flexural arm is connected to the first support posts, and the second flexural arm is connected to the second support post.

Fringing-field, parallel plate actuator

A switch that includes a droplet capable of spreading between two conductors to allow them to be coupled when a voltage is applied. The droplet can be enclosed by a cap that is bonded to a wafer that the droplet is placed upon, and include metallic properties. The cap can create a cavity that may be filled by a fluid, gas, or vapor. The cavity can have multiple conductors that extend partially or fully through it. The droplet can couple the conductors when specific voltages, or frequencies are applied to them. At the specific voltage and frequency, the droplet can spread, allowing at least two conductors to be coupled.

Liquid metal MEMS switch

A micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) device includes a moveable element within a cavity. The MEMS device also includes a first layer over the cavity, the first layer having a first hole and a second hole. The first hole has a first diameter. The second hole has a second diameter. The second diameter is larger than the first diameter, and the second hole is farther from the moveable element than the first hole. The first hole is sealed with a first dielectric material. The second hole is sealed with a second dielectric material. The cavity filled with a gas at a pressure of at least approximately 10 torr.

MEMS encapsulation employing lower pressure and higher pressure deposition processes

In a clock apparatus, a signal waveguide includes: a gas cell having a sealed interior; and a dipolar gas inside the sealed interior. A first apparatus is configured to provide a first electromagnetic wave through the sealed interior along a first direction. A second apparatus is configured to provide a second electromagnetic wave through the sealed interior along a second direction, in which the second direction is opposite the first direction. Also, the clock apparatus includes receiving apparatus coupled to the signal waveguide and configured to detect an amount of energy in the second electromagnetic wave passing through the dipolar gas.

Molecular atomic clock with wave propagating rotational spectroscopy cell

A switch that includes a droplet capable of spreading between two conductors to allow them to be coupled when a voltage is applied. The droplet can be enclosed by a cap that is bonded to a wafer that the droplet is placed upon, and include metallic properties. The cap can create a cavity that may be filled by a fluid, gas, or vapor. The cavity can have multiple conductors that extend partially or fully through it. The droplet can couple the conductors when specific voltages, or frequencies are applied to them. At the specific voltage and frequency the droplet can spread allowing at least two conductors to be coupled.

A compact mmW spectroscopy cell system for detecting volatile organic compounds (compounds) in a gas. The system includes a gas collection chamber, an input buffer cavity for receiving the gas from the gas collection chamber, pumping devices to pass the gas from the buffer cavity to an absorption cell and maintain pressure, and a transceiver connected to the cell. The transceiver interrogates the absorption cell filled with the gas by passing a high frequency electromagnetic signal and sweeping the signal to generate an absorption spectra which is compared to a spectroscopy database for detecting the compounds in the gas. The absorption cell, collection chambers, and pumping devices are fabricated with standard CMOS processing techniques at chip and wafer scale. The transceiver bonded to the absorption cell with chip scale integration.

Integrated compact mmW spectroscopy cell system and method

A millimeter wave apparatus, with a substrate, a transceiver in a first fixed position relative to the substrate, and a gas cell in a second fixed position relative to the substrate. The clock apparatus also comprises at least four waveguides.

Compact millimeter wave system

In described examples, a magnetic sensor includes a waveguide that encapsulates dipolar molecules. A mm-wave electromagnetic field is launched into the waveguide, travels through the dipolar molecules, and is then received after passing through the dipolar molecules. The frequency of the mm-wave electromagnetic signal is swept across a range that includes an intrinsic quantum rotational state transition frequency (Fr) for the dipolar molecules. Absorption peaks in accordance with the Zeeman effect are determined. A strength of a magnetic field affecting the magnetic sensor is proportional to a difference in the frequencies of the absorption peaks.

Millimeter wave magnetic sensor

A system includes first and second gas cells each comprising a respective sealed interior waveguide; first transmit antenna coupled to the first gas cell to provide a first electromagnetic wave to the first gas cell along a first direction; second transmit antenna coupled to the first gas cell to provide a second electromagnetic wave to the first gas cell along a second direction opposite the first direction; third transmit antenna coupled to the second gas cell to provide a third electromagnetic wave to the second gas cell; first receive antenna coupled to the first gas cell to generate a first signal indicative of an amount of energy in first electromagnetic wave; second receive antenna coupled to the second gas cell to generate a second signal indicative of an amount of energy in second electromagnetic wave; and processor to calculate a background-free signal based on a difference between first and second signals.

Background suppression for doppler-free mm-wave spectroscopy

An apparatus includes a substrate containing a cavity and a dielectric structure covering at least a portion of the cavity. The cavity is hermetically sealed. The apparatus also may include a launch structure formed on the dielectric structure and outside the hermetically sealed cavity. The launch structure is configured to cause radio frequency (RF) energy flowing in a first direction to enter the hermetically sealed cavity through the dielectric structure in a direction orthogonal to the first direction.

Launch structures for a hermetically sealed cavity

A system includes first and second gas cells, each comprising a respective sealed interior waveguide. The first gas cell contains a dipolar gas and the second gas cell does not contain a dipolar gas. The system includes first and second transmit antennas coupled to the first and second gas cells, respectively, to provide first and second electromagnetic waves to the interior of the first and second gas cells, respectively; first receive antenna coupled to the first gas cell to generate a first signal indicative of an amount of energy in the first electromagnetic wave after travel through the first gas cell; second receive antenna coupled to the second gas cell to generate a second signal indicative of an amount of energy in the second electromagnetic wave after travel through the second gas cell; processor configured to calculate a background-free signal based on a difference between the first and second signals.

Background suppression for MM-wave spectroscopy

A clock generator includes a hermetically sealed cavity and clock generation circuitry. A dipolar molecule in the hermetically sealed cavity has a quantum rotational state transition at a fixed frequency. The clock generation circuitry generates an output clock signal based on the fixed frequency of the dipolar molecule. The clock generation circuitry includes a detection circuit, a reference oscillator, and control circuitry. The detection circuit generates a first detection signal and a second detection signal representative of amplitude of signal at an output of the hermetically sealed cavity responsive to a first sweep signal and a second sweep signal input to the hermetically sealed cavity. The control circuitry sets a frequency of the reference oscillator based on a difference in time of identification of the fixed frequency of the dipolar molecule in the first detection signal and the second detection signal.

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Garland, TX, United States of America

Adam Joseph Fruehling