Alcatel N.v.

Alcatel

International Standard Electric Corporation

Avanex Corporation

Peter Kersten

Hans Volz

Ulrich Seyfried

Helmut Hanisch

Klaus-D Matthies

Horst Hoffmann

Thomas Pfeiffer

Anton Ambrosy

Albrecht Mozer

Reimund Dorn

Johann Springer

Roland Münzner

Antoni Picard

Jaakko Aarnio

Werner Rehm

Wiltraud Wischmann

Jens Schulze

Johannes Koppenborg

Sigrun Schneider

Wolfgang Heck

Andreas Wieder

J&ouml;rg Reinhardt

Gerhard Schreiber

An optical component comprising an optical waveguide and adjacent to it at least one grating array adapted to reflect stray light away from said optical waveguide. The use of a grating array with a plurality of structures like polygons or stripes gives the possibility to define a multiple of reflection directions. This is obtained by using polygons layed out in different orientations up to a random one or a Bragg grating preferably defined with a non-uniform period (chirped). Such grating arrays are usually structured within the same layer as the optical waveguide core layer.

Stray light absorber including grating array

It is an object of the invention to provide a network topology for OCDM signals. Coding splitters combining both coding and splitting functions are provided. The coding splitters themselves can be made from cascaded Mach Zehnder filters which are located somewhere in the network and which can be integrated using planar waveguide technologies. Each OCDM transceiver as well as the network is connected to the splitter via a pair of fibers for the two transmission directions. This set-up has the advantage that the same splitter can be used for both directions to and from the transceivers on one side and to and from the network on the other side.

Bidirectional coding splitter

The invention relates to a self-centering arrangement of microstructured elements, particularly of microoptical components on a substrate serving as carrier. To provide microoptical components with projections that fit into corresponding recesses is known in the art. The invention provides a way to improve the mutual alignment of components (K,, K,) in that a deformation occurs when projections (Z,, Z,) are inserted into the recesses (A). This deformation may concern the projections or the recesses themselves or a molding material introduced between the projections and the recesses. The deformation improves the self-centering properties; in addition, manufacturing tolerances are more easily compensated. If the element cannot be provided with a suitable projection, an intermediate carrier is used, which is, for example, a plastic element produced by a LIGA process.

Self-centering arrangement of microstructured elements

An optical mode filter, that is, an optical component in which the basic mode can propagate undamped as much as possible but which in higher modes are strongly damped. The optical mode filter, is an integrated optical wave guide formed by, a higher-refracting or an absorbent material disposed near a flat wave guide core. Two buffer layers are located opposite the wave guide core, and one is formed with a thinned region to function as a filter for higher modes being transmitted through the wave guide core.

Optical mode filter

An optical hybrid switch is indicated, which guides a voltage-controlled light flux supplied by an incoming passive optical waveguide (1), to at least one of two outgoing passive optical waveguides (1, 1a). The hybrid switch according to the invention preferably uses a NLO-polymer as the electro-optically active elements. The increased attenuation linked to the use of NLO-polymer is kept low by extending the incoming optical waveguide (1) without interruption as one of the outgoing optical waveguides. To steer the light flux to the other outgoing optical waveguide (1a), the light is coupled out from an electro-optically active waveguide structure (5) by an adjustable coupler (6), and coupled to the other outgoing passive waveguide (1a) through another fixed adjustment coupler (8).

Optical hybrid switch with electroptically active waveguide structure

Manufacturing of optoelectronic components in which an optical waveguide is made of an optically nonlinear (NLO) polymer, above and below of which is provided a buffer layer which carries at least one stripe electrode. The at least one stripe electrode is used as a mask to form the NLO polymer waveguide.

Method of manufacturing optoelectronic components

An optical switch has a substrate and a transparent material in which a three-dimensional diffraction pattern is recorded which is capable of diffracting light, the material having non-linear optical properties and extending in the form of a first layer above the substrate. At least one first electrode and at least one second electrode are provided for varying the diffraction pattern in accordance with applied voltages.

Optical switch

An optical modulator having a slit arrangement and an associated zone exhibiting both an electrooptical effect and an intrinsic polarization direction, includes an electrode arrangement to which an information signal is applied during operation. The slit arrangement is a double slit arrangement while the electrode arrangement includes three electrodes between which the slits are disposed. At one slit, the electrical field of the signal is oriented in the same direction as the intrinsic polarization direction and, at the other slit, the electrical field of the signal is oriented in a direction opposite to the intrinsic polarization direction.

Optical modulator

A transparent substrate is covered with a metal layer which serves as an etch mask for forming a groove, and from which regions are formed which constitute electrodes. At least the groove and the adjacent areas of the substrate are then covered with a layer of a material having electrooptical properties, the material in the groove forming an optical waveguide.

Integrated optical waveguide

An improved optical isolator (6) for a semiconductor laser (2) for use in optical communication systems consists of a polarizer (4) and a birefringent medium (5). An electric field is applied to the birefringent medium (5) via electrodes (7) for varying the indices of refraction of the birefringent medium (5). By the variation of the indices of refraction, the optical isolator (6)can be adapted to different light wavelengths.

Optical isolator

A strain gauge comprised of a premagnetized ferromagnetic film wherein any change in length of the film can be measured by employing the properties of magnetostriction and magnetoresistance. The strain gauge is deposited on a substrate by thin-film techniques and has a very high sensitivity. Preferably, two electrically insulated strips parallel strips of amorphous metal film have (in the absence of strain) respective directions of magnetization aligned antiparallel to one another and are connected electrically at one end. Such an arrangement facilitates the reversion of the magnetization back to its easy direction when the stress causing the strain is removed.

Strain gauge

A strain gauge comprised of a premagnetized ferromagnetic film wherein any change in length of the film is converted into a planar Hall voltage by employing the property of magnetostriction and the planar Hall effect. Alternately, a change in the length of the film can also be measured as a change in electric conductivity by employing the properties of magnetostriction and magnetoresistance. The strain gauge is deposited on a substrate by thin-film techniques and has a very high sensitivity.

A high-resolution position sensor utilizes a detector having at least one flat magnetic-field-dependent resistor, in stripe form, whose ends are connectable to an output voltage, and a magnetizable device which is moveable relative to the magnetic-field-dependent resistor and has portions transverse to the direction of movement which exhibit alternately different space permeabilities, with the magnetic-field-dependent resistor extending parallel to and at a distance from said portions by the magnetic-field-dependent resistor. The magnetic field dependent resistor displays anisotropy in the longitudinal direction of the stripes. At least in the area of the magnetic-field-dependent resistor the device is magnetized in or opposite the direction of movement.

Position sensor

A magnetic field sensor is disclosed with which the direction of a magnetic field can be determined by using the planar Hall effect. An active layer of the sensor is made of a ferromagnetic amorphous metal which is magnetically isotropic. Thus, the magnetization in the active layer always has the direction of an external magnetic field. The developed planar Hall voltage is a measure of the direction of the magnetic field.

Circular, amorphous metal, Hall effect magnetic field sensor with

Electrical contacts to or mechanical connections between components and provided by using a thin layer of an alloy consisting of metals and metalloids. Such a layer shows excellent adhesion to glass or semiconductor substrates.

Growing community of inventors

Leonberg, Germany

Peter Kersten