Multichannel Integrated Optic Device Modules in LinbO3 for Digital Data Processing*

Abstract

Numerous LinbO3-based integrated optic (IO) devices that utilize electrooptic (EO) or acoustooptic (AO) effect in either planar or channel waveguides have been constructed in recent years for future applications in optical communication and RF signal processing systems. However, most of these IO devices utilize a single or a small number of light sources and are, therefore, best suited to applications that involve a relatively small number of channels. In the meantime, it is of increasing interest to make IO devices that utilize a large number of light sources such as the diode laser array so that the very large channel capacities that are inherent in the diode laser, the optical fiber, and the photo-detector arrays may be conveniently expolited. Recently, successful fabrication of microlenses and microlens arrays (using the TIPE technique) [1] and channel-planar composite waveguides (using the TI process) [2] in LinbO3 has enabled us to construct a number of multichannel IO device modules. These device modules have been used to perform RF spectral analysis and analog computing [3,4]. In this paper, two such TIPE microlens-based multichannel device modules that were constructed most recently are reported. These two device modules represent the highest degree of integration that has been accomplished thus far, and are being used to carry out a variety of digital data processing and computing experiments.