Optical switching device with reconfigurable channel spacing
First Claim
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1. An optical switching device, comprising:
- a liquid crystal (LC) element operable in a first mode and a second mode and having a plurality of LC subpixels each of which is independently controllable, wherein at least two adjacent LC subpixels are controlled together in unison when the LC polarizing element is configured in the first mode to modulate the polarization of a light beam from a group of light beams having a first channel spacing, and each of the two adjacent LC subpixels is independently controlled when the LC polarizing element is configured in the second mode to modulate the polarization of a light beam from a group of light beams having a second channel spacing that is narrower than the first channel spacing; and
an optical element positioned in the optical path of the light beams for changing the optical path of the light beams based on a polarization state of the light beams.
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Abstract
An optical switching device includes an array of liquid crystal macropixels, wherein each macropixel includes at least two liquid crystal subpixels. The subpixels may be controlled together to act as a single polarizing pixel, or independently to act as multiple polarizing pixels. When the switching device processes a WDM having a wide channel spacing, the subpixels are controlled together, and when the switching device processes a WDM having a narrow channel spacing, each subpixel is controlled independently.
8 Citations
15 Claims
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1. An optical switching device, comprising:
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a liquid crystal (LC) element operable in a first mode and a second mode and having a plurality of LC subpixels each of which is independently controllable, wherein at least two adjacent LC subpixels are controlled together in unison when the LC polarizing element is configured in the first mode to modulate the polarization of a light beam from a group of light beams having a first channel spacing, and each of the two adjacent LC subpixels is independently controlled when the LC polarizing element is configured in the second mode to modulate the polarization of a light beam from a group of light beams having a second channel spacing that is narrower than the first channel spacing; and an optical element positioned in the optical path of the light beams for changing the optical path of the light beams based on a polarization state of the light beams. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. An optical switching device comprising:
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at least one input port; at least two output ports; a liquid crystal (LC) array positioned between the input port and the output ports, the LC array including an array of macropixels each including a plurality of independently controllable LC subpixels, wherein the LC array is configured in a first mode to modulate the polarization of a light beam from a group of light beams having a first channel spacing, and in a second mode to modulate the polarization of a light beam from a group of light beams having a second channel spacing that is narrower than the first channel spacing; and an optical element positioned in the optical path of the light beams for changing the optical path of the light beams based on a polarization state of the light beams, wherein, in the first mode, the LC subpixels that form one macropixel are controlled in unison, and, in the second mode, each of the LC subpixels that form one macropixel is independently controlled. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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Specification