Global Patent Index - EP 0873532 A4

EP 0873532 A4 19991215 - MACH-ZEHNDER SWITCH

Title (en)

MACH-ZEHNDER SWITCH

Title (de)

MACH-ZEHNDER-SCHALTER

Title (fr)

COMMUTATEUR DE MACH-ZEHNDER

Publication

EP 0873532 A4 19991215 (EN)

Application

EP 96916609 A 19960523

Priority

  • US 9607648 W 19960523
  • US 48909095 A 19950609

Abstract (en)

[origin: WO9642027A1] A compact monolithic Mach-Zehnder switch is formed such that one of the waveguide paths (69, 70) between the input and output couplers (67, 68) contains a material which exhibits a resonant nonlinearity, whereby its refractive index changes when pump power propagates through it. Each of the waveguide paths (69, 70) has a different propagation constant whereby signal light is subjected to a different delay in each path when no pump power is propagating through the rare nonlinear path. An input signal applied to the input (71, 72) of the switch appears at a first output terminal (73, 74) when the pump power does not propagate through the nonlinear path, and it appears at a second output terminal (73, 74) when the pump power is applied to the nonlinear path. Switching occurs at relatively low levels of pump power.

IPC 1-7

G02B 6/26; G02B 6/10

IPC 8 full level

G02B 6/26 (2006.01); G02B 6/122 (2006.01); G02B 6/34 (2006.01); G02F 1/313 (2006.01); G02F 1/35 (2006.01); G02F 1/365 (2006.01); G02B 6/12 (2006.01); G02B 6/28 (2006.01)

CPC (source: EP)

G02F 1/3136 (2013.01); G02F 1/3517 (2013.01); G02B 6/2835 (2013.01); G02B 6/29352 (2013.01); G02B 2006/12145 (2013.01); G02F 1/3131 (2013.01)

Citation (search report)

  • [DY] US 5295205 A 19940315 - MILLER WILLIAM J [US], et al
  • [DY] US 5351325 A 19940927 - MILLER WILLIAM J [US], et al
  • [Y] US 5044715 A 19910903 - KAWACHI MASAO [JP], et al
  • [DY] PANTELL R H ET AL: "ANALYSIS OF NONLINEAR OPTICAL SWITCHING IN AN ERBIUM-DOPED FIBER", JOURNAL OF LIGHTWAVE TECHNOLOGY, vol. 11, no. 9, 1 September 1993 (1993-09-01), pages 1416 - 1424, XP000416247, ISSN: 0733-8724
  • [A] NAKAMURA S ET AL: "HIGH-REPETITION OPERATION OF A SYMMETRIC MACH-ZEHNDER ALL-OPTICAL SWITCH", APPLIED PHYSICS LETTERS, vol. 66, no. 19, 8 May 1995 (1995-05-08), pages 2457 - 2459, XP000507760, ISSN: 0003-6951
  • See references of WO 9642027A1

Designated contracting state (EPC)

DE FR GB IT

DOCDB simple family (publication)

WO 9642027 A1 19961227; AU 5929996 A 19970109; AU 697911 B2 19981022; CA 2221749 A1 19961227; EP 0873532 A1 19981028; EP 0873532 A4 19991215; JP H11507741 A 19990706

DOCDB simple family (application)

US 9607648 W 19960523; AU 5929996 A 19960523; CA 2221749 A 19960523; EP 96916609 A 19960523; JP 50307597 A 19960523