MEMS and PLC ee290f

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MEMS and PLCee290f

• J Provine
• 2.19.2004

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Overview

• Introduction Motivation
• PLC components (AWG)
• MEMS components
• Desired System
• Integration technique
• Additional applications

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Introduction

• Transmission capacity far exceeds switching
  capacity
• 40 Gbps fiber deployed late 2002/2003
• All-optical switching will emerge with improved
  transmission technology
• Advancing optics
• Fiber-based
• Passive devices
• Active devices

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Introduction

• Bottom line most of current devices serve on the
  transmission-link level.
• Few products bring new functions to the network
  level. Or take advantage of network properties.

?1
VOA
Rx
OXC
?2
VOA
Rx
DGEF
DC
Rx
?n
VOA
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Motivation

• Wavelength OXC is available and deployed.
• Deployment of waveband OXC is only limited by
  transmission technology (no regeneration).
• However, when we interconnect WB OXC with ? OXC,
  we are restricted by the flexibility of MUX/DEMUX!

Problem MUX/DEMUX has fixed input/output
wavelengths.
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Motivation

• Reconfigurable Mux/Demux is a desired optical
  system.
• Existing technologies (TFF, AWG, bulk gratings,
  etc.) do not allow this.
• But perhaps linking the optical device with
  MEMS will allow desired functionality.

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Planar Lightwve Circuits

• Silica/Silicon based waveguide elements
• Arrayed Waveguide Gratings
• Waveguide Bragg Gratings
• Optical Fibers

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Cyclic AWG

• Finally, the cyclic nature from changing input
  waveguides provide the desired action.
• Just need a good method for changing the input
  waveguide.

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MEMS Components
Scanning Mirror. In plane. Limited scanning
angle. Stress concerns. Excellent fill
factor. Size related to Resonant frequency.
Digital sidewall mirror. Utilizes DRIE. Decent
roughness. Easy fabrication. Light parallel to
plane. Small mirror size. Integration enabled.
Pop-up Mirror. Out of plane. Good size and
smoothness. Bad fill factor and assembly.
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Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer
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Results
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Current Work
Use a scanning mirror at input.
Flip Chip integration.
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Current Work
PLC
MEMS
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Other Devices Applications

• Optical Delay Lines Other switch configurations