The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Nov. 15, 1983
Filed:
Dec. 31, 1980
Carl M Verber, Columbus, OH (US);
Richard P Kenan, Upper Arlington, OH (US);
Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, OH (US);
Abstract
Apparatus for receiving light entering therein and controlling the directions in which portions of the light travel therethrough. Input means (21) directs portions (22) of the entering light (20) in a predetermined input direction (23) into a processing region (24) in a waveguide (25). Control means (26) temporarily and separately changes the index of refraction in each of a plurality of subregions (27) in the processing region (24), to modulate the light (22) travelling thereto in approximately the predetermined input direction (23) differently from any light travelling thereto in other input directions. Output means (28) receives portions (29) of the light travelling beyond the subregions (27) in at least one selected output direction (30) and responds thereto. Typically each subregion (27A-27H) is such that providing altered indexes of refraction therein can form in the subregion (27A-27H) a Bragg grating positioned with a direction of Bragg incidence approximately in the predetermined input direction (23). The control means ( 26) typically comprises an electrooptic grating (27A-27H) (having a plurality of interdigital electrodes (32)) in each subregion (27), and means (26A-26H) for applying a potential difference to each grating (27A-27H) separately, and thus providing an electrical field in each subregion (27) at selected times. The apparatus (FIG. 1) is especially useful and advantageous in character generators (FIG. 3), correlators (FIGS. 4,5,9,10), and the like.