Optical switch
DC CAFCFirst Claim
1. An apparatus, comprising:
- an optical switch changing a direction of a light beam by changing a phase of an optical wave front of the beam.
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Abstract
The present invention is a system that includes phase spatial light modulators as optical switching elements in an optical switching system. One or more input light beams are deflected by one or more input optical deflectors to a mirror and then to one or more output optical deflectors. Each deflector is a phase spatial modulator which changes the direction of the light beam by changing the phase of the beam wave front. The wave front is two dimensionally subdivided into pixels and pixel reflectors are used displace portions of the wave front in a direction generally perpendicular to the beam axis and relative to each other. Beam splitters, lenses, decoders and controllers provide the ability to cross connect or reroute beams and route packets.
74 Citations
40 Claims
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1. An apparatus, comprising:
an optical switch changing a direction of a light beam by changing a phase of an optical wave front of the beam. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An optical switch, comprising:
an array of displaceable reflectors, each reflector displacing a portion of a wave front of an optical beam. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19)
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20. An optical switch, comprising:
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an input spatial light modulator deflecting an input beam producing an intermediate beam; and
an output spatial light modulator reflecting the intermediate beam as an output beam to one of two or more output ports. - View Dependent Claims (21)
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22. An optical switch, comprising:
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an input optical deflector deflecting an input optical beam producing an intermediate optical beam; and
an output array of optical deflectors with one of the deflectors of the output array deflecting the intermediate beam producing an output beam with each of the optical deflectors comprising a spatial light modulator. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25)
a beam decoder decoding a routing address of an input beam; and
a routing controller controlling selection and deflection of the optical deflectors.
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26. An optical switch, comprising:
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an input array of optical deflectors deflecting the input optical beams producing intermediate optical beams; and
an output array of optical deflectors with the deflectors of the output array deflecting the intermediate beams producing output beams with each of the optical deflectors comprising a spatial light modulator. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
a first field lens focusing the input optical beams; and
a second field lens focusing the intermediate optical beams.
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32. An apparatus, comprising:
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an optical switch changing a direction of a light beam by changing a phase of an optical wave front of the beam using a phase spatial light modulator where the beam is divided into pixels and each pixel of the modulator comprises a focusing lense and spring held mirror having a position adjusted by a depositing a known charge upon the mirror, the phase of the wave front is changed in segments where the phase for each segment is responsive to an integral number of light beam wavelengths and additionally adjusted for beam divergence; and
a controller controlling the direction responsive to a routing address.
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33. A method, comprising:
optically switching a light beam by changing a phase of a wave front of the beam using a spatial light modulator. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35)
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36. An optical switch receiving a single input beam and producing of output beams and comprising two spatial light modulators configured in a Michelson interferometer to receive the single input beam and produce of output beams.
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37. An optical switch receiving input beams and producing output beams and comprising four phase optical light modulators configured in pairs into two Michelson Interferometers receiving the input beams and producing the output beams.
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38. An optical switch, comprising:
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a optical beam splitter having an input side and splinting an input optical beam into two equal intensity beams; and
a pair of spatial light modulators deflecting the equal intensity beams back to a same area of the beam splitter with relative phase such that all of the light intensity exits from an output side opposite the side of the beam splitter from the input side where the modulators deflect the input optical beam into one of plural output beam positions.
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39. An optical switch, comprising:
a Michelson interferometer having a pair of spatial light modulators deflecting an input optical beam to one of plural output beam positions.
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40. An optical switch, comprising:
a pair of Michelson interferometers, each interferometer having a pair of spatial light modulators deflecting an input optical beam to one of plural output beam positions.
Specification