Bragg reflection gratings in optical fibres

• US 5,956,442 A
• Filed: 12/04/1995
• Issued: 09/21/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Northern Telecom Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: Byron, Kevin Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): Ullah, Akm E.
• Application Number:
  US08/566,499
• Time in Patent Office: 1,387 Days
• Field of Search: 385/4, 385/10, 385/11, 385/37, 385/123, 385/129, 385/130, 385/147, 359/3, 359/24, 359/569, 359/578, 359/900
• US Class Current: 385/37
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/02085 characterised by the grating profile, e.g. chirped, apodised, tilted, helical
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/02138 based on illuminating a phase mask
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/02152 involving moving the fibre or a manufacturing element, stretching of the fibre G02B6/02147 takes precedence

Abstract

Exposure to UV light of a photosensitive optical fiber through a uniform pitch phase grating is employed to write a chirped Bragg reflection grating in that fiber by imparting tensile strain to the fiber while sections of the Bragg reflection grating are sequentially written, and by altering the magnitude of that strain during the writing process.

Claims

1. A method of writing a chirped Bragg reflection grating in a photosensitive optical fiber, which grating is created by traversing a beam of electro-magnetic radiation along the fiber axis, which beam is incident upon the fiber through a diffraction grating located adjacent the fiber and oriented to have diffracting elements extending at an angle to the fiber axis, wherein the fiber is longitudinally tensioned by an amount that is varied during the writing therein of the grating.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the diffraction grating is a uniform pitch diffraction grating.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the diffraction grating is a phase grating.

4. A method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the phase grating has a phase step of magnitude substantially equal to π

.

5. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the distance between the diffraction grating and the fiber is modulated during the writing of the Bragg reflection grating.

6. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the exposure of the fibre to the electro-magnetic radiation is a non-uniform function of position along the length of the Bragg reflection grating.