| 摘要 |
PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a small-sized inexpensive optical circulator in which the number of structural parts divided with respect to the propagation direction of light is decreased as much as possible and thin birefringent crystals can be used. SOLUTION: This optical circulator consists of a combination of parallel plate optical devices. Along the propagation direction of light as one direction seen from the odd number of plural ports for entering and outgoing light, the circulator has the optical device part consisting of a first birefringent crystal 1, first 45 deg. Faraday rotator 5, second birefringent crystal 2 and third birefringent crystal 3, second 45 deg. Faraday rotator 6, and fourth birefringent crystal 4. The second and third birefringent crystals 2, 3 are joined to form a pair so that the polarized light components separated from each other by the first birefringent crystal 1 separately enter and outgo from the respective crystals with the separation direction of polarized light opposite to each other. The optical device part has a port of an odd number of entering and outgoing light on the side of the first birefringent crystal 1 and has a port of an even number for entering and outgoing light on the side of the fourth birefringent crystal 4.
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