Patent
Method of making optical chirped grating with an intrinsically chirped grating and external gradient
| العنوان: | Method of making optical chirped grating with an intrinsically chirped grating and external gradient |
|---|---|
| Patent Number: | 6,169,831 |
| تاريخ النشر: | January 02, 2001 |
| Appl. No: | 09/237,123 |
| Application Filed: | January 26, 1999 |
| مستخلص: | A method for making a chirped grating device capable of a broad bandwith for optical communication systems is disclosed. An intrinsically-chirped optical grating is externally strained to alter the range of chirping. The external strain may be induced by a gradient-generating body bonded onto the length of the fiber grating that may be latchably strained so that the grating characteristics may be changed or tuned while avoiding use of a continuous power supply. Various optical networking applications using such dispersion compensating devices are also disclosed. |
| Inventors: | Adams, Laura Ellen (Basking Ridge, NJ); Eggleton, Benjamin John (Berkeley Heights, NJ); Espindola, Rolando Patricio (Chatham, NJ); Jin, Sungho (Millington, NJ); Mavoori, Hareesh (Berkeley Heights, NJ); Rogers, John A. (New Providence, NJ); Strasser, Thomas Andrew (Warren, NJ) |
| Assignees: | Lucent Technologies Inc. (Murray Hill, NJ) |
| Claim: | We claim |
| Claim: | 1. A method for making a chirped grating device having a broad bandwidth and adjustable dispersion and amplitude response, the method comprising the steps of |
| Claim: | providing a length of waveguide having an intrinsically-chirped grating region and applying an extrinsic gradient to the waveguide to alter the range of chirping in the intrinsically-chirped grating region, thereby producing the grating device having the broad bandwidth and adjustable dispersion and amplitude response. |
| Claim: | 2. The method of claim 1, in which the extrinsic gradient comprises a temperature gradient or a strain gradient. |
| Claim: | 3. The method of claim 1, in which the extrinsic gradient is applied by disposing a body adjacent the length of waveguide and attached to the waveguide proximal the intrinsically-chirped grating region, and inducing an elastic strain in the body to thereby adjust the range of chirping in the grating. |
| Claim: | 4. The method of claim 3, in which the body comprises a gradient-generating body having a certain length that is attached along at least a portion of its length to the waveguide at the intrinsically-chirped grating region. |
| Claim: | 5. The method of claim 4, in which the length of waveguide comprises a length of optical fiber and the gradient-generating body is integrally formed with the fiber. |
| Claim: | 6. The method of claim 5, in which the gradient-generating body is integrally formed by processing methods selected from sputtering, evaporation, chemical vapor deposition, electrodeposition, electroless deposition, dip-coating, and etching. |
| Claim: | 7. The method of claim 5, in which the body comprises a mobile magnet secured to the waveguide and the elastic strain is provided by a non-mobile magnet secured to a fixed substrate or guiding rail adjacent the waveguide. |
| Claim: | 8. The method of claim 1 in which the intrinsically-chirped grating region comprises a long-period grating. |
| Claim: | 9. The method of claim 1, in which the broad bandwith comprises a bandwith of about at least 8 nm. |
| Claim: | 10. A dispersion compensating module comprising an optical circulator and a plurality of chirped grating devices prepared according to claim 1. wherein the plurality of chirped grating devices are independently tunable. |
| Claim: | 11. A wavelength division multiplexed optical communications system comprising a source of multiple wavelength optical signal channels, an optical fiber trunk, a receiver for receiving multiple optical signal channels, a multiplexer/demultiplexer, and one or more gratings prepared according to claim 1. |
| Claim: | 12. The system of claim 11 further comprising a length of dispersion compensating fiber. |
| Claim: | 13. An optical amplifier comprising an input isolator, a first length of rare-earth doped fiber, a first pump for optical pumping the first length of fiber, a second length of rare-earth doped fiber, a second pump for optical pumping the second length of fiber, an output isolator, a circulator, and a plurality of gratings prepared according to claim 1. |
| Claim: | 14. An article comprising a chirped grating device having a broad bandwidth and adjustable dispersion and amplitude response, the device comprising a length of waveguide having an intrinsically chirped grating region and an apparatus for applying an extrinsic gradient to the waveguide to alter the range of chirping in the grating region. |
| Claim: | 15. The article of claim 14, in which the apparatus is configured to impose an extrinsic temperature gradient on the intrinsically-chirped grating region. |
| Claim: | 16. The article of claim 10, in which the apparatus comprises a body disposed adjacent the length of waveguide and attached to the waveguide proximal the grating region, and a component for inducing an elastic strain in the body to thereby adjust the range of chirping. |
| Claim: | 17. The article of claim 16, in which the elastic strain is latchable so that the dispersion compensating characteristics of the waveguide may be controllably altered without a continuous supply of power. |
| Claim: | 18. The article of claim 14, in which the apparatus imposes a mechanically-induced strain at the grating region. |
| Claim: | 19. A dispersion compensating module comprising at least one grating device according to claim 14 operating as a tunable dispersion compensating grating. |
| Claim: | 20. A dispersion compensating module comprising an optical circulator and at least one grating device according to claim 14. |
| Current U.S. Class: | 385/37 |
| Current International Class: | G02B 634 |
| Patent References Cited: | 5982963 November 1999 Feng et al. 5999546 December 1999 Espindola et al. 5999671 December 1999 Jin et al. 6031950 February 2000 Fujita 6055348 April 2000 Jin et al. |
| Primary Examiner: | Lee, John D. |
| Assistant Examiner: | Connelly-Cushua, Michelle R. |
| Attorney, Agent or Firm: | Mathews, Collins, Sheperd & Gould, P.A. |
| رقم الانضمام: | edspgr.06169831 |
| قاعدة البيانات: | USPTO Patent Grants |
| الوصف غير متاح. |