Method for Fabricating Buried Ion-Exchanged Waveguides Using Field-Assisted Annealing

IP Title

Method for Fabricating Buried Ion-Exchanged Waveguides Using Field-Assisted Annealing

Summary

Success in erbium doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) research has stimulated the development of Er doped glass planar waveguide devices. Planar waveguide components, allowing integration with other optoelectronic devices on the same chip and efficient waveguide-to-fiber coupling, are very attractive for many applications. Likewise, planar waveguide geometry needs a large gain over a short distance; therefore a high Er concentration is required. Planar waveguide amplifiers are different from fiber amplifiers because the Er ion concentration in these amplifiers is more than ten times higher. At such a high Er ion concentration, the upconversion process has a dominant effect on the amplification properties. Also, optical amplifiers with broad bandwidth and flat gain are required, and there is great potential for developing other glass host materials that may find possible applications in future telecommunications networks. It is useful to develop planar waveguide devices to increase the bandwidth, to miniaturize the size and to lower the cost of optical interface equipment. This combination of amplifiers with passive integrated function benefits the field of optical communications, because it offers higher flexibility, lower cost and better compactness than its fiber counterpart.

Technology Application

“Low cost amp” markets and metro telecommunication and networks.

Application Date

18/05/2005

ID No.

11/132,359

Country/Region

Hong Kong

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