SiLC Technologies, Inc.

An optical device has a semiconductor chip with a photonic circuit. The photonic circuit includes a waveguide with a first portion and a second portion. A cross sectional area of the second portion of the waveguide is larger than a cross sectional area of the first portion of the waveguide. The first portion of the waveguide is positioned over a device platform. The waveguide includes a taper that provides a transition between the first portion of the waveguide and the second portion of the waveguide. The taper is an inverted taper that extends below the first portion of the waveguide into the device platform. The second portion of the waveguide terminates at a facet. A recess extends into the chip. The recess has lateral sides. A first one of the lateral sides serving as the facet. A second one of the lateral sides is positioned such that light signals that exit the waveguide through the facet travel across the recess to be received at the second lateral side. The second lateral side is configured to reflect the light signals such that after reflection by the second lateral side the light signals travel away from the second lateral side and toward a location that is above the chip or below the chip.

A semiconductor chip has a photonic integrated circuit with a first waveguide and a second waveguide. an optical bridge is positioned over a first one of the faces of the semiconductor chip. The optical bridge is configured to receive a light signal from the first waveguide and the second waveguide is configured to receive the light signal from the optical bridge. The optical bridge holds an optical device and is configured to direct the light signal along a first optical pathway and along a second optical pathway. The first optical pathway, the optical device, and the second optical pathway are arranged such that the light signal received from the first waveguide travels through the optical bridge along the first optical pathway, then through the optical device, and then through the optical bridge along the second optical pathway before being received at the second waveguide.

An optical device has a semiconductor chip with a photonic circuit. The photonic circuit includes a waveguide with a first portion and a second portion. A cross sectional area of the second portion of the waveguide is larger than a cross sectional area of the first portion of the waveguide. The first portion of the waveguide is positioned over a device platform. The waveguide includes a taper that provides a transition between the first portion of the waveguide and the second portion of the waveguide. The taper is an inverted taper that extends below the first portion of the waveguide into the device platform. The second portion of the waveguide terminates at a facet. A recess extends into the chip. The recess has lateral sides. A first one of the lateral sides serving as the facet. A second one of the lateral sides is positioned such that light signals that exit the waveguide through the facet travel across the recess to be received at the second lateral side. The second lateral side is configured to reflect the light signals such that after reflection by the second lateral side the light signals travel away from the second lateral side and toward a location that is above the chip or below the chip.

An on-chip optical switch based on an echelle grating and a phase tuning element is described herein. The phase tuning element may change a refractive index of the material through which an optical signal propagates, thereby causing a change in the angle of propagation of the optical signal. By dynamically tuning the phase change element, the refractive index change may be controlled such that the deviation of the optical signal causes the optical signal to be focused on a particular coupling waveguide out of an array of coupling waveguides. The echelle grating with the active phase change element form a configurable optical switch capable of switching an optical signal between two or more coupling waveguides, that may be respectively connected to different optical signal processing pathways.

The imaging system has a photonic circuit chip that includes multiple cores that each includes a port through which an outgoing optical signal exits the photonic circuit chip. Each of the cores is configured such that the outgoing signal exits the photonic circuit chip traveling toward a location that is above or below the photonic circuit chip. Additionally, each of the cores is configured to combine light from one of the outgoing signals with a reference signal so as to generate a signal beating at a beat frequency. The imaging system also includes electronics that use the beat frequencies from the cores to calculate data that indicates a radial velocity and/or distance between the system and one or more objects located outside of the system.

A LIDAR system includes a light source configured to output a source signal. The LIDAR chip is also configured to output a LIDAR output signal that exits from the LIDAR chip. The LIDAR system also includes an isolator adapter that includes an optical isolator configured to receive an adapter signal. The adapter signal includes light that is from the source signal and that has exited from the LIDAR chip before being received by the optical isolator. The isolator is configured to output light from the adapter signal in an isolator output signal. Additionally, the LIDAR output signal includes light from the isolator output signal.

A LIDAR system includes a light source configured to output a source signal. The LIDAR chip is also configured to output a LIDAR output signal that exits from the LIDAR chip. The LIDAR system also includes an isolator adapter that includes an optical isolator configured to receive an adapter signal. The adapter signal includes light that is from the source signal and that has exited from the LIDAR chip before being received by the optical isolator. The isolator is configured to output light from the adapter signal in an isolator output signal. Additionally, the LIDAR output signal includes light from the isolator output signal.

An on-chip optical switch based on an echelle grating and a phase tuning element is described herein. The phase tuning element may change a refractive index of the material through which an optical signal propagates, thereby causing a change in the angle of propagation of the optical signal. By dynamically tuning the phase change element, the refractive index change may be controlled such that the deviation of the optical signal causes the optical signal to be focused on a particular coupling waveguide out of an array of coupling waveguides. The echelle grating with the active phase change element form a configurable optical switch capable of switching an optical signal between two or more coupling waveguides, that may be respectively connected to different optical signal processing pathways.

An on-chip optical switch based on an echelle grating and a phase tuning element is described herein. The phase tuning element may change a refractive index of the material through which an optical signal propagates, thereby causing a change in the angle of propagation of the optical signal. By dynamically tuning the phase change element, the refractive index change may be controlled such that the deviation of the optical signal causes the optical signal to be focused on a particular coupling waveguide out of an array of coupling waveguides. The echelle grating with the active phase change element form a configurable optical switch capable of switching an optical signal between two or more coupling waveguides, that may be respectively connected to different optical signal processing pathways.

An on-chip polarizer for polarization filtering is described herein. The polarizer includes a rib waveguide on a supporting substrate, wherein the rib waveguide and the substrate may respectively comprise different materials. The rib waveguide may include a strip positioned over a slab of the same material. The strip may include a curvature along an optical propagation direction. In some embodiments, the curvature may include two bends that together form an approximately mirrored S-shaped curvature. The waveguide curvature may be configured to selectively guide an optical mode associated with a first polarization state while filtering-out another optical mode associated with a second polarization state. In some embodiments, the polarizer may allow propagation of a near lossless transverse magnetic (TM) mode while selectively radiating away a lossy transverse electric (TE) mode.