Optical component coupling using self-written waveguides

Abstract

Optical component coupling using self-written waveguides is one of the promising methods to improve the existing alignment control difficulties in optical component coupling. Using conventional UV curable resin as a waveguide material, waveguide spontaneously forms by UV light exposure from an edge of an optical fiber. When UV light is exposed from two faced optical fiber edges, self-written waveguide forms and connect the two optical fibers with decreasing its coupling loss between them. As one interesting feature, optical coupling of the fibers can be attained even significant gap and offset would exist between the fibers. The observed coupling loss after waveguide formation is significantly lower than that before the waveguide formation. Another remarkable feature is that the coupling technique requires no edge treatment of the fibers to be coupled because of similarity of refractive indexes between UV resin and the fibers. Buffer-coated optical fibers are thus coupled using this technique simply after cutting by conventional scissors. The coupling using all solid type self-written waveguides, which have stabilized cladding material can also be achieved though further investigation is necessary to attain low loss waveguides materials. Using this interesting coupling method, conditions required for conventional optical couplings, such as severe alignment control and edge treatment would be significantly relaxed in a optical component coupling procedure.