| 摘要 |
An invention proposes a new method for making two collimator arrays aligned each other with high precision (or for making two collimator aligned each other with hi gh precision and for making single collimator array on silicon V-Groove plate substrate. Background: The collimator array has many applications in optical fiber system, module, subsystems. The collimator array can be used in optical fiber switch matrix. The collimator array can be used in DWDM mux and demux module. The collimator array can be used in polarization control. The collimator array can be used in isolator array, circulator array, polarization controller array, variable attenuator array. Most commonly way to build collimator array is fiber array coupling with mic ro lens array. The advantage of the collimator array built with fiber array coupling with microlens array is the spacing of collimators can be very small, as small as the fiber array spacing. The disadvantage of this technology is that the alignment between fiber array and micro lens array is very credical. Any misalignment between fiber array and collimator array will result in large insertion loss, cross talk between adjusting channels. There is a demand for two collimator arrays(or collimators) with a high precision aligned each other. Each collimator of thefirst collimator array is aligned with one collimator of the second collimator array. The highly aligned two collimator arrays can be used in optical switch, in polarization controller, in other optical fiber system, a nd in optical fiber network applications. Up to now there is not simple approach to align two collimator arrays each other with high precision or to align two collimators each other with high precision. US patent# 6168319 proposed to use a glass sleeve to align two collimators. The glass sleeve has some fabrication errors, which will bring some misalignment for aligning the two collimators. To find a good method to align two collimator arrays with high precision is becoming an unsolved problem.
|
