Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation

Trw Limited

James G Ho

Gregory Douglas Goodno

Dustin Guenther

Joshua E Rothenberg

Hagop Injeyan

Eric C Cheung

Joseph M Harkenrider

Hiroshi Komine

Stephen John Brosnan

Richard L Davis

Stuart McNaught

Thomas Jung

Akhil R Shah

Terrance T Lam

James H Poylio

A fiber array launcher assembly including a hollow body having a front end and a rear end; an alignment plate having an array of holes coupled to the rear end of the body; a beam shaper having an array of lenses coupled to the front end of the body, where a separate lens is aligned with each hole in the alignment plate; and a plurality of fiber assemblies each including a fiber having an end face spliced to an end of an endcap where the endcap has a larger diameter than a diameter of the fiber, and where a separate endcap is secured in each hole so that the fiber is aligned with the associated lens.

Fiber array launcher assembly

A system and method for fabricating an optical element. The method includes welding an array of fibers to the optical element, measuring an angle error and a position error of each fiber, calculating a correction for each fiber for the angle error and the position error and correcting the angle and position of each fiber using the calculated corrections.

System and method for fabricating an optical element

A method for assembling a two-dimensional fiber array launcher assembly. The method includes providing an alignment structure having a two-dimensional alignment plate with holes at one end and a two-dimensional beam shaper with micro-lenses at an opposite end. An endcap having a fiber attached thereto is systematically positioned in each hole, and is aligned with one of the micro-lenses with a high precision tolerance. The aligned endcap is then secured in the hole using a curable glue. This process is continued until all of the holes have aligned endcaps. If one of the endcaps is mis-aligned or becomes damaged, the glue can be heated and the endcap realigned or replaced.

Direct glue compact two dimensional fiber launcher assembly

A method for assembling a beam combiner array including providing an array block having a back wall, a front surface and a plurality of aligned channels extending from the back wall to the front surface, where a bore extends through the back wall and into each channel, and providing a lens array including a plurality of lenses. The method further includes securing the lens array to the front surface of the block so that one of the lenses is aligned with each channel and threading a separate hollow core fiber through one of the bores in the back wall so that an end of the fiber is positioned within the channel. The method also includes aligning each fiber to the lens array so that a beam that propagates down the fiber is emitted into the channel, focused by the lens and emitted from the array as a collimated beam.

Method for assembling a hollow core optical fiber array launcher

A method for fabricating a beam shaper array assembly, where the beam shaper array assembly changes the shape of a plurality of beams. The method includes providing an optical endcap having a plurality of connector stems, welding a fiber to each of the stems to form an emitter array and positioning a beam shaper array adjacent to the endcap opposite to the stems. The method also includes measuring an angle error and a position error of each fiber, calculating a correction for each fiber for the angle error and the position error and correcting the angle and position of each fiber using the calculated corrections.

Method for high fill-factor optical arrays manufacturing

A beam combiner array assembly including an array block having a back wall and a front surface and a plurality of aligned and sealed channels extending from the back wall to the front surface. A lens array including a plurality of lenses is secured to the front surface of the block so that one of the lenses is aligned with each channel, and a plurality of fiber flanges are secured to the back wall of the block so that a separate one of the flanges is aligned with each channel. A hollow core fiber extends through each flange and the back wall so that an end of the fiber is positioned within one of the channels. A beam that propagates down each fiber is emitted into the channel, focused by the lens and emitted from the assembly as a collimated beam.

Hollow core optical fiber array launcher with sealed lens block

A multi-fiber endcap array can include an endcap that includes a stem surface and an exit surface, wherein the exit surface opposes the stem surface. The multi-fiber endcap array can also include a plurality of stems extending from the stem surface of the endcap and a plurality of optical fibers. Each of the plurality of optical fibers is optically coupled and mechanically coupled to a corresponding stem of the plurality of stems.

Endcap array for optical fibers

An optical fiber launcher assembly can include a low precision fiber array that outputs a plurality of optical signals from a given side that are input into an opposing side. The optical fiber launcher assembly can also include a corrective optic aligned with and spaced apart from the low precision fiber array. The plurality of optical signals output from the low precision array to the corrective optic have a given trajectory and optical signals output from the corrective optic have a substantially parallel trajectory different from the given trajectory.

Fiber launcher

An optical system can include an aligned fiber in optical communication with an optical medium. The optical system can also include a micro-mirror separated from an end of the aligned fiber by a first distance. The micro-mirror is positioned and shaped to transform light transmitted between the end of the aligned fiber and a target region of an integrated circuit (IC) chip. The micro-mirror is separated from the target region by a second distance the micro-mirror transforms an aspect ratio of a beam profile of the light.

Micro-beam shaping optics (MBSO)

An internally switched fiber laser amplifier is disclosed and claimed. The switch is integrated directly into the fiber amplifier, so that the output power from each fiber amplifier can be switched between N selectable output fibers with minimal (approx. 1%) loss. The switch may be a close coupled pump switch, a spherical mirror or a planar mirror. The fiber laser amplifier may switch both pump and source lights, or may switch only the pump light then combine it with the source light before sending it to a gain amplifier.

Fiber laser amplifier with switched multiple fiber output

An optical channel waveguide having a reflection grating and a related method for its fabrication. The grating is apodized to provide a desired reflection or transmission spectral characteristic, by varying the grating width along the length of the grating in the direction of light propagation. The grating has multiple parallel elements extending across the waveguide channel width, and apodization is effected by appropriate selection of the width of each element relative to the width of the channel, without varying the grating duty cycle or other parameters.

Grating apodization technique for diffused optical waveguides

A deformable membrane mirror and a related method for its use, the mirror including a deformable membrane having a reflective front face and a back face, and further including electrodes located on both sides of the membrane, to provide a desired surface contour without imparting a concave bias to the membrane. The electrodes include a first set of electrodes spaced from the back face of the membrane, and at least one additional electrode spaced from the front face of the membrane.

Bi-directionally actuated thin membrane mirror

A method is provided for seeding laser system () for single longitudinal mode oscillation. The method includes coupling laser system () to be seeded for single mode output to a seed laser radiation source (). Next, the frequency capture range () and spacing () of the axial modes () of the cavity () of the laser system () are determined. A seed spectrum () is then generated from the seed laser radiation source () with a bandwidth () corresponding to the axial mode spacing (). The seed spectrum () includes a comb of discrete frequency components () with one or more of the discrete frequency components () being within the frequency capture range () of at least one of the axial modes (). The seed spectrum () is then injected into the cavity () such that at least one of the axial modes () oscillates with the seed radiation.

Robust seeding technique for single mode laser oscillation

An alignment system for co-aligning multiple laser beams to a single spatial reference point in real time. The alignment system includes a beam sampler for sampling the multiple pulsed laser beams. The sampled laser beams are directed onto a quadrant photo detector or quad cell. The output signals from the quad cell are directed to a detector signal integration circuit which develops error signals for driving tip-tilt mirrors in the beam path of the multiple lasers. The system includes a gate, reset and pulse ID generator for generating pulse trigger signals for each of the multiple lasers and signals for correlating the detector signals with the laser that produced the signal. Accordingly, a system is provided for a time multiplexed, multiple laser system which automatically co-aligns the output beams from each of the lasers to a single spatial reference point in real time.

Co-alignment of time-multiplexed pulsed laser beams to a single reference point

A high efficiency solid state Raman laser system for shifting the frequency of an input beam emitted by a laser pumping system is described. The laser pumping system suppresses relaxation oscillations in the input beam and emits a constant power, mode-locked pulse train. A solid Raman medium is disposed inside a Raman resonator cavity to shift the frequency of the input beam to produce a Raman beam. The frequency of the Raman beam is finely tuned in the resonator cavity to eliminate high order Raman shifted wavelengths. The polarization of the Raman beam is selected using a polarizing element disposed in the resonator cavity. The Raman beam frequency is shifted using a non-linear medium inside the resonator cavity. The non-linear medium is preferably a frequency doubler. The Raman laser system is particularly suitable for producing high-quality yellow light for guide star applications.

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Los Angeles, CA, United States of America

James G Ho