Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College

Ren Yang

Wanjun Wang

Steven A Soper

An accurate and inexpensive integral micro-optical system for coupling and aligning optical fibers with other optical components, such as other optical fibers, diffusers, beam shapers, beam splitters, mirrors, or lenses is disclosed. The micro-optical coupler disclosed comprises one or more fiberport collimators and one or more microlens arrays, optically aligned during fabrication so that an optical fiber, or other source of light, was coupled to another optical fiber, or other light receiver, by simple inserting the optical source in one side of the micro-coupler and inserting the optical receiver in the other side of the micro-coupler. Often the fabrication process for this system can be done in a single lithography procedure. Since the optical axis of each component was aligned during the fabrication step, no subsequent alignment was required.

Integral pre-aligned micro-optical systems

An inexpensive device and method of fabricating microlenses able to be pre-aligned with other optical components (e.g., mirrors, splitters, and prisms, cylindrical lenses, plano-plates and prisms) fabricated on the same substrate to form an integrated optical platform. This integrated optical platform enhances optical systems by reducing coupling losses, cross-talking, and dispersion, and allowing for the simultaneous optical focusing of one or more light beams in a true, three-dimensional arrangement. The novel device comprises an optical lens having an out-of-plane orientated, optical axis (i.e., the optical axial is parallel to the substrate on which the optical bench system is located) with a quasi-parabolic surface.

Growing community of inventors

Corona, CA, United States of America

Ren Yang