| 摘要 |
PURPOSE:To obtain a switch with excellent characteristic and can be worked easily, by providing a waveguide whose end part has been tapered, on the first waveguide, providing a liquid crystal layer on said tapered part, controlling a refractive index of the liquid crystal layer by an electric field or a magnetic field, and switching a propagation light beam to the second waveguide. CONSTITUTION:A waveguideIconsisting of a waveguide layer (1.561 refractive index) glass spattered film 7 and an intermediate layer (a glass spattered film of 1.464 refractive index) 8 is formed on a Vycor glass (1.457 refractive index) substrate 6. Subsequently, a tapered waveguide layer 9 is formed by an SiO2- Ta2O5 glass spattered film (1.748 refractive index), and on its tapered part, a liquid crystal layer 10, for instance, a pneumatic liquid crystal (its refractive index) can be controlled extending over 1.48-1.60 by an electric field or a magnetic field) layer 10 is provided, and on the flat part of the layer 9, a clad layer 11 is provided by use of a glass spattered film. On the liquid crystal layer 10, liquid crystal sealed glass 12 is fixed by use of an adhesive agent 13. An optical switch operated stably is obtained by applying voltage from lead parts 16a, 16b placing an optical propagation part between them, to parallel band- like electrodes 15a, 15b provided on the tapered part of the layer 9, and changing the refractive index of the liquid layer 10. |
