Optical switch and optical add/drop multiplexer

摘要

To provide with a wavelength-selection optical switch (1) able to select a light with a certain wavelength and an optical add/drop multiplexer using the same. An optical switch comprising: a silicon substrate (12); a glass substrate (21) arranged to face a surface of the silicon substrate and having a transparent electrode layer (A) in its opposing surface; a light diffraction reflection layer (25) aligned on a surface of the silicon substrate; a liquid crystal layer (17) aligned between the light diffraction reflection layer and the transparent electrode layer; a silicon substrate electrical terminal (22) extracted from a rear surface of the silicon substrate; and a means for applying voltage between the transparent electrode layer and the silicon substrate electrical terminal; wherein selection of wavelength of light diffracted and reflected by the light diffraction reflection layer is possible by controlling the refraction index of the liquid crystal layer through the voltage.