Laxense Inc.

Litexel Inc.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Dartmouth College

Xiaochen Sun

Ningning Feng

Dawei Zheng

Juejun Hu

Lingxuan Zhang

Lionel Cooper Kimerling

Anuradha Murthy Agarwal

Tian Gu

Jifeng Liu

Xiaoxin Wang

Jianfei Wang

A 3D range imaging method using a LiDAR system includes sequentially generating multiple far field patterns to illuminate a target scene, each far field pattern including a plurality of light spots where each spot illuminates only a segment of a scene region unit that corresponds to a sensor pixel of the LiDAR receiver. Within each scene region unit, the multiple segments illuminated in different rounds are non-overlapping with each other, and they collectively cover the entire scene region unit or a part thereof. With each round of illumination, the signal light reflected from the scene is detected by the sensor pixels, and processed to calculate the depth of the illuminated segments. The calculation may take into consideration optical aberration which causes reflected light from an edge segment to be received by two sensor pixels. The depth data calculated from the sequential illuminations are combined to form a ranged image.

3D range imaging method using optical phased array and photo sensor array

A switched optical phased array based beam steering LiDAR (light detection and ranging) system includes an integrated photonics optical phased array (OPA) that includes an optical switching network for selectively connecting a large number of 1D scanning (in a first direction or field-of-view) antenna arrays to a light source. Each array is configured to emit light in a predefined angle of a second direction or field-of-view and can be switched individually to connect to the light source. At any given time, the phase shifters of only one such array, i.e. the one that is switched to connect the light source, are actively adjusted by the control circuits, so that the active power consumption is greatly reduced. The LiDAR system also includes a photo sensor receiver, other control and signal processing circuits, and other necessary optical and mechanical components.

Switched optical phased array based beam steering LiDAR

An optical interconnect system has first and second waveguides each with wedge-shaped cross-section at a first end, disposed over an optical modulator. The optical modulator is a surface-plasmon multi quantum well (SP-MQW) modulator, the first waveguide an input waveguide and the second waveguide configured an output waveguide. In embodiments the SP-MQW modulator has multiple semiconductor layers disposed atop a lower metal layer between 10 and 300 nanometers thick and configured such that incident light is reflected at the lower metal layer unless a voltage is applied to the semiconductor layers, when incident light is coupled into a surface plasmon mode in the lower metal layer.

Method and apparatus of surface-incident, plasmon-enhanced multiple quantum well modulators and optical coupling thereon

An on-chip optical phased array includes an array of photonic antenna units connected in series by photonic waveguides and arranged in a two-dimensional array to produce complex still and scanning optical patterns through optical interference effect. Each antenna unit includes an output photonic antenna (e.g. grating antenna), and a waveguide phase shifter for adjusting the optical phase of the optical beam output by the antenna unit. The grating antenna and the waveguide phase shifter are formed in the same optical wave guiding layer which includes a core layer between two cladding layers. The grating antennas may be a shallow-etched structure or a deep-etched edge-modulated grating. The optical phased array, including the array of photonic antenna units and the electrodes that connect and provide electrical power to them, can be made on a single chip of silicon using complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) or compatible fabrication processes.

On-chip optical phased array using a serial grating antenna design

The invention provides methods of forming an optical device, in particular, a silicon optical modulator using shallow rib waveguide structure. According to the embodiments of the present invention, the silicon optical waveguide modulator includes a shallow rib waveguide with asymmetric shoulder heights disposed on a surface of a substrate; one side terminated by the waveguide edge and the other side terminated by a second laterally oriented PN junction, a first vertically oriented PN junction is positioned inside the light propagation region of the waveguide; and higher doping regions with the same type of doping type of the adjoining regions are positioned on the asymmetric shoulders outside the light propagation regions in electrical contact with metal contacts.

Silicon optical modulator using asymmetric shallow waveguide and the method to make the same

An optical device includes an optical bench and two flip-chip bonded optical chips. The optical bench includes a large area slab waveguide structure which has an input facet facing the first optical chip, an output facet facing the second optical chip, and one or more curved facet which reflects the slab mode light such that the input optical mode coupled through the input facet diverges in the slab waveguide plane as it propagates, reflects at the one or more curved facets, and focuses to an output optical mode at the output facet with mode size larger than the input optical mode in the in-plane direction. During fabrication, after the first optical chip is flip-chip bonded, the location of the focused output optical mode on the output facet is determined, and then the second optical chip is flip-chip bonded based on the determined location of the output optical mode.

Hybrid integrated optical device enabling high tolerance optical chip bonding and the method to make the same

The invention provides an optical system, in particular, a multi-channel parallel optical transceiver system with monitoring photodetectors and methods of forming the same. The multi-channel parallel optical system includes a substrate with at least one optical component mounted on the first side, at least one optical monitoring photodetector (mPD) fabricated on the first side of the substrate, a set of optical functional components disposed on the first side of the substrate to guide and reflect the light signal, an arrayed fiber placement structure fixing at least one optical fiber and having an exposed end to couple with the optical functional components to guide and diffract light from and to the optical components mounted on the first side of the substrate. The optical alignment of the optical placement structure, optical functional components, and the optical components mounted on the substrate is realized passively through the alignment holes and pins.

Parallel optical system with integrated monitoring photodetectors

An optical device including an optical bench and an optical chip, the optical bench having multiple optical waveguides formed on its first side and the optical chip has multiple optical waveguides formed on its first side. The optical chip is flip-chip bonded onto the optical bench with its first side facing the first side of the optical bench. The distance between adjacent waveguides on the optical bench are designed to be slightly different from the distance between adjacent waveguides on the optical chip, where the latter usually is a pre-designed value under certain conventions. The difference amount is properly designed such that under reasonable misalignment between the optical chip and the optical bench in the in-plane direction perpendicular to waveguide propagation one can always find that one of the multiple waveguides is aligned sufficiently well with the corresponding waveguide on the optical chip.

Hybrid integrated optical device with high alignment tolerance

A hybrid optical device includes an optical bench chip, a laser chip with a laser waveguide flip-chip bonded onto the optical bench chip, and an optical waveguide chip with an optical device waveguide disposed adjacent the optical bench chip. The optical bench chip has multiple 'U' shaped alignment optical waveguides and the optical waveguide chip has multiple alignment optical waveguides, and the pitches of the various sets of alignment waveguides are different. A misalignment between the laser waveguide and the optical bench chip is compensated for by aligning the optical waveguide chip to different positions of the optical bench chip using the multiple alignment optical waveguides on the optical bench chip and the optical waveguide chip, without turning on the laser, so that the laser waveguide of the laser chip is aligned with the optical device waveguide of the optical device chip.

Hybrid integrated optical device with passively aligned laser chips having submicrometer alignment accuracy

An optical modulator device made on large core silicon fin waveguide platform and its fabrication methods. The optical device includes two silicon optical coupling waveguides each having a lower ridge and an upper ridge, two mode transformers respectively connecting the coupling waveguides with an optical modulator waveguide. The optical modulator waveguide has a silicon fin waveguide structure with a narrower fin structure on top of a wider lower ridge structure. Each coupling waveguide and the corresponding mode transformer form a two-stage horizontal taper structure, namely a taper in the lower ridge of the coupling waveguide and a taper of the mode transformer. The light travelling in the coupling waveguide with majority of light in the upper ridge can gradually shift to the lower ridge of the optical modulator where an electro-optic region is positioned. The electro-optic region changes its optical property in response to an applied electric field.

Optical device having electro-optic silicon modulator on large core fin waveguide and method to make the same

The invention provides an optical system, in particular, a multi-channel parallel optical transceiver system and methods of forming the same. The multi-channel parallel optical system includes a first substrate with at least one optical component mounted on its first side, a second substrate with optical fibers affixed in fiber fixing structures (grooves), the second substrate being mounted on the first side of the first substrate perpendicular to the first side of the first substrate so that the optical signal can be transmitted and received between the optical fibers and the mounted optical components with minimum loss. Passive alignment assembly is realized by using a series of alignment pins and holes and/or grooves pre-fabricated on the substrates. The optical systems may additionally include other structures to provide additional functionalities, in-line monitor photodetectors, and mechanical support or substrate elevation.

Passive alignment multichannel parallel optical system

A tunable optical system with hybrid integrated semiconductor laser is provided. The optical system includes a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate; a first optical waveguide tunable comb filter formed at the first side of the SOI substrate; a second optical waveguide tunable comb filter with detuned filter response formed at the first side of the SOI substrate; an etched laser pit at the first side of the SOI substrate; a plurality of spacers formed on the bottom surface of the laser pit near the plane of the first side of the SOI substrate; a plurality of bumping pads formed on the bottom surface of the laser pit near the plane of the first side of the SOI substrate; and a laser chip flip-chip bonded at the first side of the SOI substrate supported by the spacers. Heating sections may be provided on the filters to tune the filters.

Tunable optical system with hybrid integrated laser

An optical system includes a silicon substrate, a 45-degree or 54.7-degree reflector formed in the silicon substrate, deeply etched double U-shape trenches formed in the silicon substrate, a thin film disposed on the reflector surface with total or partial optical refection, a top and bottom surface contacted p-i-n structure formed in the silicon substrate for optical power monitoring, a plurality of rectangular or wedge shaped spacers formed on top surface of the silicon substrate, and a surface emitting light source flip-chip bonded on the silicon substrate via the spacers.

Optical system with integrated photodetector using a self-aligned double U-groove structure

A Ge waveguide photo-detector fabricated on a silicon-on-insulator substrate is provided. It comprises a Ge waveguide detector end-coupled to a light-signal-carrying silicon waveguide, both disposed on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate. An electrical field is established along the direction of light propagation inside the Ge waveguide detector by doping the two opposite ends of the Ge detector with P or N type dopants. In result the height and width of the Si waveguide is decoupled from the speed of the Ge detector.

Waveguide end-coupled infrared detector

A multispectral pixel structure is provided that includes a plurality of stacked cavity arrangements for emitting or detecting a plurality of specified wavelengths, wherein each stacked cavity arrangement having a photoactive layer for spectral emission or detection of one of the specified wavelengths. The photoactive layer is positioned within a resonant cavity stack and the resonant cavity stack being positioned between two adjacent mirror stacks. A plurality of coupling-matching layers are positioned between one or more of the stack mirror arrangements for controlling optical phase and coupling strength between emitted or incident light and resonant modes in each of the stacked cavity arrangements.

Growing community of inventors

Chino Hills, CA, United States of America

Xiaochen Sun