Abstract

The application of tapered optical waveguide sections has been suggested for coupling optical fibers and lasers. A tapered optical waveguide has unequal radii (r₁ > r₂) separated by some length L and usually but not always is attached to an optical fiber at one end. The primary characterization of the tapered waveguide is usually in terms of the taper angle A, which is the half-angle of the conic section formed by the taper. It can be shown that light rays traveling down the taper (from r₁ to r₂) increase their angle with the surface by 2A with each reflection.

© 1986 Optical Society of America