Abstract:
An optical coupling system and method of fabrication are included. The optical coupling system includes a substrate layer and an optical waveguide material overlying the substrate layer. The optical waveguide material can include a grating. The system also includes a cover material overlying the optical waveguide material to couple an optical signal to the optical waveguide material via the grating at a coupling angle. Approximately zero energy of the coupled optical signal is lost in the substrate layer due to a combination of the coupling angle and a difference in refractive indices between the cover material and the substrate layer.
Abstract:
A directional backlight is disclosed. The directional backlight has a plurality of light sources to generate a plurality of input planar lightbeams. The plurality of input planar lightbeams illuminates a directional backplane that has a plurality of directional pixels to scatter the plurality of input planar lightbeams into a plurality of directional lightbeams. Each directional lightbeam has a direction and angular spread control led by characteristics of a directional pixel in the plurality of directional pixels. The directional backlight can be used to generate a 3D image by speci fying the characteristics of the directional pixels in the directional backplane.
Abstract:
Optical polarizers and optical isolators and systems that incorporate the optical polarizers and isolators are disclosed. In one aspect, an optical isolator includes a Faraday crystal with a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface, a first one-dimensional sub-wavelength grating disposed on the first surface, and a second one-dimensional sub-wavelength grating disposed on the second surface. The isolator is to receive a first input beam of light on the first grating and output a polarized first output beam of light through the second grating approximately parallel to the first input beam. The isolator is to also receive a second input beam of light on the second grating and output a polarized second output beam of light through the first grating with the second output beam offset from the second input beam.
Abstract:
A small-mode-volume, vertical-cavity, surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) (101). The VCSEL (101) includes an active structure (102) to emit light (118) upon injection of carriers, and two reflecting structures (103) at least one of which is a grating reflector structure (112). The active structure (102) is disposed within at least one of the reflecting structures (103). The reflecting structures (103) are configured as a vertical-cavity resonator of small mode-volume. An optical-bus transmitter (601) including a plurality (610) of small-mode-volume VCSELs, and a system (605) including at least one optical bus (650) and at least one optical-bus transmitter (601) in a digital-information processor (607), or a data-processing center (609), are also provided.
Abstract:
An optical device (15; 25; 315; 325; 345; 400; 500; 600; 700; 800) may include a light transmissive medium (450; 550; 650; 750; 850) having two sides. On one side may be a high reflectivity mirror (430; 530; 630; 830) and on the other side may be a plurality of partial reflectivity mirrors (460-466; 560-566; 662-666; 860-870) that may be guided mode resonance or nanodot mirrors. An optical system (25; 315; 325; 345; 500; 600; 700; 800) may have a plurality of light inputs, a light transmissive medium (550; 650; 750; 850), and a plurality of light outputs from the light transmissive medium (550; 650; 750; 850). The light transmissive medium (550; 650; 750; 850) may have a high reflectivity mirror (530; 630; 830) on one side and a plurality of partial reflectivity mirrors (560-566; 662-666; 860-870) on a second side.
Abstract:
A handheld device (310) includes: a transmitter or receiver (410) of a signal beam (340) for quantum key distribution; and a source (412, 414) of alignment beams (312, 314, 316, 318) that diverge from each other in a pattern that matches sensors (322, 324, 326, 328) on a station (320) containing a receiver or transmitter (430) for the quantum key distribution. The alignment beams from the handheld device (310) are of sufficient intensity to produce on the station visible spots that facilitate manual alignment of the handheld device (310). The station (320) can measure a position and a direction of respective alignment beams and dynamically steer the signal beam (340) according to the measurements.
Abstract:
A spatial light modulator includes an array of pixels, with each of the pixels having a dimension smaller than a wavelength of light to be modulated. Each of the pixels further has a permittivity that can be controlled using an electronic signal applied to the pixel.
Abstract:
Liquid crystal coupled light modulation includes a light guide to guide light by total internal reflection (TIR), a diffraction grating and a liquid crystal sandwiched between the diffraction grating and the light guide. The liquid crystal has a state with a first refractive index to defeat TIR and another state with a second refractive to facilitate TIR at a surface of the light guide. The liquid crystal in the first refractive index state is to couple out a portion of the guided light to the diffraction grating and the diffraction grating is to provide diffractive redirection of the coupled portion out of the light modulator.
Abstract:
An apparatus (2) can comprise an optical slab (4) comprising a rigid substrate of substantially transmissive material. The apparatus (2) can also comprise a WDM multiplexer (6) to receive and combine a plurality of optical signals (14, 16 and 20) at different wavelengths to form a combined optical signal (24) in the optical slab (4) having an aggregate power. The apparatus can further comprise a broadcaster (28) to distribute the combined optical signal (24) from the optical slab (4) to each of a plurality of different optical receivers (30, 32 and 34) with a fraction of the aggregate power of the combined optical signal (24).
Abstract:
Techniques related to optical devices are described herein. In an example, an optical device includes (a) an input optical channel and a corresponding output optical channel, and (b) an assembly of sub-wavelength grating layers aligned to optically couple the input optical channel to the output optical channel.