Multipoint, contentionless wavelength selective switch (WSS)

• US 9,661,406 B2
• Filed: 05/12/2015
• Issued: 05/23/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Molex LLC (KOCH Industries Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Nistica, Inc. (KOCH Industries Incorporated)
• Inventors: Wagener, Jefferson L.
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, DZUNG D
• Application Number:
  US14/709,770
• Publication Number:
  US 20160234574A1
• Time in Patent Office: 742 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0212 using optical switches or wavelength selective switches [WSS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 11/0005 Switch and router aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0016 using wavelength multiplexing or demultiplexing
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0024 using space switching
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0026 using free space propagation (e.g. lenses, mirrors)
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0041 Optical control
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0047 Broadcast; Multicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0058 Crossbar; Matrix

Abstract

An optical device includes a plurality of optical input ports, a plurality of optical output ports, a wavelength dispersion arrangement and at least one optical beam steering arrangement. The plurality of optical input ports is configured to receive optical beams each having a plurality of wavelength components. The wavelength dispersion arrangement receives the optical beams and spatially separates each of the optical beams into a plurality of wavelengths components. The optical beam steering arrangement has a first region onto which the spatially separated wavelength components are directed and a second region onto which any subset of the plurality of wavelength components of each of the optical beams is selectively directed after the wavelength components in each of the subsets are spatially recombined with one another. The optical beam steering arrangement selectively directs each of subset of the plurality of wavelength components to a different one of the optical output ports.

Claims

1. An optical device, comprising:

a plurality of optical input ports configured to receive optical beams each having a plurality of wavelength components;

a plurality of optical output ports;

a wavelength dispersion element for receiving the optical beams and spatially separating each of the optical beams into a plurality of wavelengths components; and

a switching arrangement for receiving the wavelength components of the optical beams and selectively directing any subset of the plurality of wavelength components of each of the optical beams to a different one of the optical output ports, provided that wavelength components of optical beams received by two of the input ports cannot be simultaneously directed to a common one of the output ports.

2. The optical device of claim 1, wherein the subset of wavelength components of a first of the optical beams selectively directed by the switching arrangement and the subset of wavelength components of a second of the optical beams selectively directed by the switching arrangement include wavelength components having the same wavelength.

3. The optical device of claim 1, wherein the switching arrangement includes at least one optical beam steering arrangement having a first region onto which the spatially separated wavelength components are directed and a second region onto which each of the selectively directed subset of wavelength components are directed after the wavelength components in each of the subsets are spatially recombined with one another.

4. The optical device of claim 3, wherein the at least one optical beam steering arrangement includes a single optical beam steering arrangement on which the first and second regions are located.

5. The optical device of claim 3, wherein the optical beam steering arrangement includes first and second optical beam steering arrangements, the first region being located on the first optical beam steering arrangement and the second region being located on the second optical beam steering arrangement.

6. The optical device of claim 5, wherein the first and second optical beam steering arrangements include first and second programmable optical phase modulators.

7. The optical device of claim 5, wherein the first and second optical beam steering arrangements include a programmable optical phase modulator and a MEMs-based device.

8. The optical device of claim 5, wherein the first optical beam steering arrangement is programmable optical phase modulator and the second optical beam steering arrangement is a MEMs-based device.

9. The optical device of claim 3, wherein the wavelength dispersion element spatially separates each of the optical beams in a first plane and the switching arrangement selectively directs the spatially received subset of the plurality of wavelength components of each of the optical beams in a second plane orthogonal to the first plane.

10. The optical device of claim 3, wherein the at least one optical beam steering arrangement includes a programmable optical phase modulator.

11. The optical device of claim 1, wherein the switching arrangement is configured to switch selected ones of the wavelength components while they are dispersed into spatially separated wavelength component and also when they are non-dispersed.

12. The optical device of claim 1, wherein the switching arrangement switches spatially separated ones of the wavelength components and wavelength components that have been spatially recombined with one another.

13. An optical device, comprising:

a plurality of optical input ports configured to receive optical beams each having a plurality of wavelength components;

a wavelength dispersion arrangement for receiving the optical beams and spatially separating each of the optical beams into a plurality of wavelengths components; and

at least one optical beam steering arrangement having a first region onto which the spatially separated wavelength components are directed and a second region onto which any subset of the plurality of wavelength components of each of the optical beams is selectively directed after the wavelength components in each of the subsets are spatially recombined with one another, the at least one optical beam steering arrangement selectively directing each of the subsets of the plurality of wavelength components to a different one of the optical output ports.

14. The optical device of claim 13, wherein the at least one optical beam steering arrangement includes a single programmable optical phase modulator on which the first and second regions are located.

15. The optical device of claim 13, wherein the at least optical beam steering arrangement includes first and second programmable optical phase modulators, the first region being located on the first programmable optical phase modulator and the second region being located on the second programmable optical phase modulator.

16. The optical device of claim 13, wherein the second region includes a plurality of locations on which the spatially recombined subsets of wavelength components are selectively directable by the at least one optical beam steering arrangement, each of the locations being associated with a different one of the optical output ports such that any of the subsets that are directed to a given one of the locations is received by the optical output port associated with the given location.

17. The optical device of claim 16, wherein the wavelength dispersion element spatially separates each of the optical beams in a first plane and the at least one optical beam steering arrangement selectively directs the spatially recombined subset of the plurality of wavelength components of each of the optical beams in a second plane orthogonal to the first plane.

18. The optical device of claim 13, wherein the at least optical beam steering arrangement includes a programmable optical phase modulator and a MEMs-based device, the first region being located on the programmable optical phase modulator and the second region being located on the MEMs based device.

19. The optical device of claim 13, wherein at least two of the optical beams having wavelength components located at a common wavelength.