Fdk Corporation

Sony Corporation

Tohoku University

Shohei Abe

Hiroaki Ono

Shusuke Wada

Hideo Takeshita

Keisuke Ikeda

Isao Kojima

Hidenori Nakada

Ikuo Maeda

Yuichi Takahashi

Takehito Shimatsu

Yoshihisa Sato

Gen Yonezawa

Yuko Ota

Shinji Takemoto

Miyuki Uomoto

Masahito Kikuchi

Tsugio Tokumasu

Teruhisa Sahashi

Kiyoshi Harada

Tomokazu Imura

Kazuhide Kubo

Mototsugu Goto

Hiroki Tatara

There is provided a functional element that includes a first substrate, a second substrate disposed to face the first substrate, and a buffer layer provided between the first substrate and the second substrate. The buffer layer has, in a layer thereof, a distribution of concentration of a metallic element. The distribution changes in a film thickness direction.

Functional element and method of manufacturing functional element, and electronic apparatus

An image capture apparatus is provided. The image capture apparatus includes a prism that separates light incident through a lens into at least two color components of light to be output and an image capture device that converts light separated by and output from the prism into a captured image signal. The image capture apparatus includes a fixing plate attached to the image capture device mounted on a substrate. In addition, the image capture apparatus includes a plurality of fixing members for fixing an unattached surface of the fixing plate, which is unattached to the image capture device, on a side surface of the prism through an adhesive.

Image capture apparatus and prism assembly and method of manufacturing the same

A reflective optical switch comprises an input/output port portion; a polarization separator/combiner for separating lights in the same optical path and combining lights in different optical paths; a Faraday rotation angle changer; a polarization rotator for changing the relationship in polarizing direction between lights in different optical paths; a birefringence element for optical path control for controlling optical path shift in response to polarizing direction; and a polarization rotating reflector for rotating polarizing direction 90 degrees on forward and return paths. The input/output port portion, the polarization separator/combiner, the Faraday rotation angle changer, the polarization rotator, the birefringence element for optical path control, and the polarization rotating reflector are arranged along the optical path, and the Faraday rotation angle changer includes a Faraday element and an electromagnet for controlling 90-degree change in polarizing direction of transmitted light thereof.

Reflective optical switch

A first separating/combining birefringent element, first and second optical-path controlling birefringent elements, and a second separating/combining birefringent elementare spaced apart. Between the first separating/combining birefringent element and the first optical-path controlling birefringent element, a first polarization rotating meansis arranged for changing a polarization direction from an orthogonal relationship to a parallel relationship, or from a parallel relationship to an orthogonal relationship. Also, between the second optical-path controlling birefringent element and the second separating/combining birefringent element, a second polarization rotating meansis arranged. The first and second optical-path controlling birefringent elements are oppositely arranged symmetrically on optical axis about an arrangement center thereof, between which is arranged a &#xbd;-wavelength plate for rotating a polarization direction of a light on a central optical path 90 degrees, thereby structuring an optical circulator. With a similar structure, an optical switch can be structured by using a &#xb1;45-degree variable Faraday rotator in the first and second polarization rotation switch means.

Optical circulator and optical switch

A reflection-type variable optical attenuator comprises: a main attenuator unit including a first birefringent crystal plate, a Faraday rotational angle varying unit, and a second birefringent crystal plate arranged in this order; an input port and an output port that are arranged on a side of one end of the main attenuator unit; and a two-point reflection-type optical path varying reflector that is arranged on a side of the other end of the main attenuator unit. Light that comes in from the input port makes a round trip in the main attenuator unit and goes out through the output port.

Reflective variable light attenuator

A variable optical attenuator is disclosed which comprises a plane-parallel birefringent element for separation/synthesis which separates light beams having orthogonal polarization directions on the same optical path, the birefringent element synthesizing light beams on different optical paths; a light converging lens disposed adjacent to the birefringent element for separation/synthesis; a reflecting mirror disposed at a focal point of the lens opposite to the birefringent element for separation/synthesis with respect to the lens; a variable polarization rotating device; and an input port and an output port which are disposed at the end of the birefringent element for separation/synthesis; the variable polarization rotating device being disposed at any position between the birefringent element for separation/synthesis and the reflecting mirror, the variable polarization rotating device controlling the rotational angle of the polarization direction of incident light beams from the input port, to thereby control the amount of reflected output light to the output port.

Variable optical attenuator

A variable optical gain equalizer in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention comprises a variable branching ratio beam splitter having a variable polarization rotator, the variable branching ratio beam splitter branching an input light beam into two light beams at an arbitrary power ratio, through control of the rotation angle of the polarization direction by the variable polarization rotator; an optical filter presenting different filter characteristics to the two branched output light beams; and a polarization coupler for polarization coupling the two light beams that have passed through the optical filter, wherein the rotation angle of the polarization direction is controlled by the variable polarization rotator so as to vary the spectra of the output light beams.

Variable optical gain equalizer and variable branching ratio beam splitter

A beam shutter is provided which comprises a plane-parallel birefringent element for separation arranged to separate input light beams having orthogonal polarization directions on the same optical path; a plane-parallel birefringent element for synthesis arranged to synthesize light beams having orthogonal polarization directions on different optical paths, for output; the birefringent element for separation and the birefringent element for synthesis being disposed in a spaced apart relationship; and polarization rotating means having a variable Faraday rotator, the polarization rotating means interposed between the birefringent element for separation and the birefringent element for synthesis, for magneto-optically controlling the polarization directions; wherein transmission and interruption of output light beams are controlled by switching the polarization directions by means of the variable Faraday rotator.

Beam shutter

Growing community of inventors

Shizuoka, Japan

Shohei Abe