Abstract
Coupling semiconductor lasers to single-mode fiber with high efficiency is a critical aspect of most optical communication systems. Currently, pigtailed laser are packaged by using either passive alignment, for which coupling efficiencies of 5-10% are typical, or active alignment, which, although time consuming and expensive, is capable of over 50% coupling. In this paper we present an integrated fiber-coupler module consisting of a silicon micromachined movable micromirror3 with a DFB semiconductor laser, aspheric lens, and fiber combined on a silicon substrate. The mirror, fabricated by using silicon surface-micromachining technology,2 consists of two polysilicon plates connected though microhinges3 to a slider at either end. Common-mode motion of the sliders produces a linear displacement, whereas separate motion of the sliders introduces a tilt in the mirror. The micromirrors are designed to be driven by on-chip micromachined linear actuators4 for automatic position control. All other components are positioned passively by using standard silicon-optical-bench (SOB) techniques. The micromirror is used to compensate for the inaccuracies inherent in the SOB technology.
© 1995 Optical Society of America
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