Whispering gallery mode resonators based on radiation-sensitive materials

• US 6,922,497 B1
• Filed: 05/19/2003
• Issued: 07/26/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/17/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: California Institute of Technology
• Original Assignee: California Institute of Technology
• Inventors: Ilchenko, Vladimir, Savchenkov, Anatoliy, Maleki, Lutfollah, Handley, Timothy A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ullah, Akm Enayet
• Assistant Examiner(s): Petkovsek, Daniel
• Application Number:
  US10/441,946
• Time in Patent Office: 799 Days
• Field of Search: 372/32, 372/92, 372/96, 372/108, 385/15, 385/27, 385/28
• US Class Current: 385/15
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/29343 Cascade of loop resonators
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/011 in optical waveguides, not otherwise provided for in this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/035 in an optical waveguide structure
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 2203/15 involving resonance effects, e.g. resonantly enhanced interaction

Abstract

Whispering gallery mode (WGM) optical resonators formed of radiation-sensitive materials to allow for permanent tuning of their resonance frequencies in a controlled manner. Two WGM resonators may be cascaded to form a composite filter to produce a second order filter function where at least one WGM resonator is formed a radiation-sensitive material to allow for proper control in the overlap of the two filter functions.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

optically coupling first and second optical resonators to allow for light coupling from the first optical resonator to the second optical resonator, wherein each optical resonator is configured to support whispering gallery modes, and wherein at least one of the first the second optical resonators is formed of a radiation-sensitive material which has a refractive index changes in response to a radiation beam at a wavelength different from light in the whispering gallery modes;

coupling a monitor beam through the first and the second optical resonators to produce an optical transmission beam;

exposing the one resonator formed of the radiation-sensitive material to the radiation beam to modify the refractive index of the resonator;

optically controlling the exposure of the radiation-sensitive material to the radiation beam to separate a change in the refractive index caused by a permanent change from a temporary thermal change in the radiation-sensitive material;

monitoring a spectrum of the optical transmission beam to measure a line shape of the spectrum; and

terminating the exposure to the radiation beam when the line shape is changed to a desired line shape.

2. The method as in claim 1, wherein the optical control of the exposure of the radiation-sensitive material comprises:

periodically chopping the radiation beam with a period sufficiently long to allow the radiation-sensitive material to cool off during the period.

3. The method as in claim 1, wherein the optical control of the exposure of the radiation-sensitive material comprises:

directing a first radiation beam to the radiation-sensitive material at a wavelength different from a wavelength of the radiation beam prior to the exposure of the radiation-sensitive material to the radiation beam, wherein the radiation-sensitive material does not change significantly in the refractive index when exposed to the first radiation beam;

after the radiation-sensitive material is thermally stabilized under the first radiation beam, replacing the first radiation beam with the radiation beam;

measuring an additional frequency shift in the monitored spectrum caused by the exposure to the radiation beam; and

terminating the exposure to the radiation beam when the additional frequency shift produces the desired line shape.

4. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

providing a first optical coupler to evanescently couple the monitor beam into the first optical resonator and a second optical coupler to evanescently couple the monitor beam out of the second optical resonator for monitoring the spectrum; and

adjusting a spacing between the first optical coupler and the first optical resonator to change a coupling strength between the first optical coupler and the first optical resonator.

5. The method as in claim 4, further comprising:

adjusting the spacing between the first optical coupler and the first optical resonator to weekly couple the first optical coupler to the first optical resonator with a high resonator quality factor; and

adjusting the spacing between the second optical coupler and the second optical resonator to strongly couple the second optical coupler to the second optical resonator with a low resonator quality factor.