Claims
- 1. A method for combining a plurality of optical signals of different center frequency into a reduced number of composite signals; the method comprising the steps of:
receiving a plurality of N parallel input optical signals each defined by a channel having a selected bandwidth and center frequency; and combining said input optical signals in at least one wavelength dependent optical device to form a plurality of M parallel optical output signals each defined by a spectrum of multiple channels where N>M.
- 2. The method recited in claim 1 wherein N≧4 and M≧2.
- 3. A method for segregating a plurality of composite signals each composed of multiple channels, each channel having a selected bandwidth and center frequency, into separate individual signals each having more than one channel; the method comprising the steps of:
receiving said composite signals each have said multiple channels of selected wavelength and bandwidth; passing said composite signals into at least one wavelength dependent optical device to form a plurality of parallel output individual signals each defined by a group of channels each having selected bandwidth and a center frequency.
- 4. An optical device for receiving an input optical composite signal having a plurality of M channels, each such channel having a selected bandwidth and center frequency and splitting the input composite signal into a plurality of output optical signals each output signal having fewer than M channels;
the device comprising:
a broadband beam splitter receiving said input composite signal at a selected angle of incidence; a pair of optical cavities positioned on opposite sides of said beam splitter, each such cavity having a selected optical thickness and a reflective cavity surface to obtain an output spectrum having selected channel spacing and wavelength separation.
- 5. The optical device recited in claim 4 wherein each said cavity is adjustable in optical thickness.
- 6. The optical device recited in claim 5 further comprising a piezoelectric device for adjusting said optical thickness.
- 7. The optical device recited in claim 4 wherein each said cavity encloses a controlled gas content.
- 8. The optical device recited in claim 4 further comprising means for precisely controlling the temperature of said cavity.
- 9. An optical device for modifying the spectra of input optical signals and generating output optical signals having the modified spectra; the device comprising:
a broadband beam splitter receiving each of said input optical signals at respective selected angles of incidence; a pair of optical cavities, one such cavity being positioned on each of opposing sides of said beam splitter; each said optical cavity having a selected optical thickness and a mirror of selected reflectivity to produce a selected phase modification.
- 10. The optical device recited in claim 9 wherein each said cavity is adjustable in optical thickness.
- 11. The optical device recited in claim 9 further comprising a piezoelectric device for adjusting said optical thickness.
- 12. The optical device recited in claim 9 wherein each said cavity encloses a controlled gas content.
- 13. The optical device recited in claim 9 further comprising means for precisely controlling the temperature of said cavity.
- 14. A spectrum exchange apparatus for interchanging selected spectral components of input composite optical signals, each such composite signal having a plurality of distinct spectral channels of selected bandwidth and center frequency; the apparatus comprising:
a spectrum multiplexer receiving said input composite optical signals and generating a unified composite signal output; and a spectrum demultiplexer receiving said multiplexer output and segregating said multiplexer output into a plurality of demux output signals each having spectral channels from at least two of said input composite optical components.
- 15. The spectrum exchange apparatus recited in claim 14 wherein each of said multiplexer and said demultiplexer comprises at least one wavelength dependent optical device.
- 16. A spectral processor for segregating an input composite optical signal having a plurality of spectral channels of selected bandwidth and distinct center frequency, into a plurality of separate output composite optical signals each having selected spectral components of the input composite optical signal; the processor comprising:
a plurality of cascaded optical spectrum synthesizers, each said synthesizer having at least one wavelength dependent optical device for separating a multiple channel optical signal spectrum into broad and narrow spectral portions, the narrow spectral portion of each synthesizer forming one of the output composite optical signals, the broad spectral portion of all but the last synthesizer forming an input to each subsequent synthesizer.
- 17. An optical communications system comprising:
a spectral multiplexer for receiving a plurality of parallel input optical signals each having at least one frequency channel of selected bandwidth and center frequency and generating a composite output signal having all of the frequency channels of the input optical signals; an add-drop module for removing certain selected frequency channels of said multiplexer composite output signal and adding certain selected frequency channels to said multiplexer composite output signal; and a spectral demultiplexer for generating a plurality of segrated parallel spectral components from said add-drop module.
- 18. A spectrum switch apparatus for use in an optical communication system; the switch apparatus comprising:
a spectral demultiplexer for receiving a composite optical signal input having a multiple channel spectrum each channel having a selected bandwidth and center frequency and generating a plurality of N parallel output signals each having at least one of said channels; and an N×N switch having N inputs and N outputs and switching means for placing any of said N inputs on any of said N outputs, said N inputs corresponding to said N parallel output signals of said demultiplexer.
- 19. The spectrum switch of claim 18 wherein N≧2.
- 20. An apparatus for receiving a composite optical signal defined by a plurality of distinct channels having spaced center wavelengths in a continuous frequency spectrum; the apparatus generating two separate output optical signals from the received signal; the apparatus comprising:
a wavelength-dependent optical device for segregating said received signal into said two separate output optical signals having non-continuous spectra; one of said output signals having a greater number of said distinct channels than the other of said output signals.
- 21. The apparatus recited in claim 20 wherein the non-continuous spectrum of one of said output signals is the complement of the non-continuous spectrum of the other of said output signals.
- 22. The apparatus recited in claim 20 wherein the combined non-continuous spectra of said two output signals contain all of said distinct channels of said continuous frequency spectrum of said received optical signal.
- 23. The apparatus recited in claim 20 wherein each of said non-continuous spectra of said output optical signals comprises a plurality of passbands that are spaced from one another in frequency; the number of said distinct channels in each of said passbands of one of said output signals being greater than the number of said distinct channels in each of said passbands of the other of said output signals.
- 24. The apparatus recited in claim 20 wherein said wavelength-dependent optical device comprises:
a plurality of optical cavities each having at least one partially reflective surface.
- 25. The apparatus recited in claim 20 wherein said wavelength-dependent optical device comprises:
at least two optical cavities having a total of at least two partially reflective surfaces; said optical cavities having a selected thickness for achieving said separate output optical signals.
- 26. The apparatus recited in claim 25 wherein at least one of said optical cavities comprises an air spaced optical cavity.
- 27. The apparatus recited in claim 25 wherein at least one of said cavities comprises a controlled gas content.
- 28. The apparatus recited in claim 27 wherein at least one of said optical cavities comprises a piezoelectric device for selecting thickness.
- 29. The apparatus recited in claim 25 wherein each of said partially reflective surfaces has a reflection coefficient in the range of 5% to 99.5%.
- 30. The apparatus recited in claim 25 wherein each of said partially reflective surfaces has a reflection coefficient in the range of 18% to 99.5%.
- 31. The apparatus recited in claim 20 wherein said received composite signal is incident on said wavelength-dependent optical device at an angle of less than 10 degrees from normal.
- 32. The apparatus recited in claim 20 wherein said wavelength-dependent optical device comprises materials having selected thermal expansion coefficients to reduce the temperature sensitivity of said device.
- 33. The apparatus recited in claim 20 wherein said wavelength-dependent optical device is positioned in proximity to temperature control apparatus for selecting temperature adjacent said device.
- 34. An apparatus for receiving a composite optical signal defined by a plurality of distinct channels having center wavelengths in a continuous frequency spectrum; the apparatus comprising:
a wavelength-dependent optical device for segregating said received signal into N separate output optical signals having non-continuous spectra, where N≧3; each of said output optical signals having a substantially equal number of said distinct channels.
- 35. A spectrum add and drop apparatus for receiving a first composite optical signal defined by a plurality of distinct channels having spaced center wavelengths in a continuous frequency spectrum and generating a second composite optical signal wherein at least some of said distinct channels from said first composite signal are replaced by substitute distinct channels in said second composite signal; the apparatus comprising:
a first wavelength-dependent optical device for segregating said first composite signal into two separate output optical signals having non-continuous spectra; one of said output signals having a greater number of said distinct channels than the other of said output signals; a second wavelength-dependent optical device connected to said first wavelength-dependent optical device for receiving said output signal having a greater number of said distinct channels, but receiving a substitute for the other output signal of said first wavelength-dependent optical device; said second wavelength-dependent optical device generating said second composite optical signal.
- 36. The apparatus recited in claim 20 further comprising at least one wavelength periodic filter connected for filtering of at least one of said output signals.
- 37. A method for demultiplexing a composite optical signal with different center-wavelengths represented by λ1, λ2, λ3, λ4, . . . λn where n is a positive integer and said wavelengths are equally spaced, comprising steps of:
a) receiving said composite optical signal into an asymmetric wavelength slicing device through a device input port; and b) slicing said composite signal and extracting a first composite optical signal comprising a first set of channels λ1, λa, λb, λc, . . . λn−a+2 through a first output port, and a second composite optical signal comprising a second set of channels λ2, λd, λe, λf, . . . λn through a second output port wherein said second set of data channels is complimentary to said first set of data channels and a spacing (λ1-λa) between λ1 and λa is different from a spacing (λ2-λd) between λ2 and λd.
- 38. A method for demultiplexing a composite optical signal with different center-wavelengths represented by λ1, λ2, λ3, λ4, . . . λn where n is a positive integer and the wavelengths are equally spaced, comprising steps of:
a) receiving said composite optical signal into an asymmetric wavelength slicing device through a device input port; and b) slicing said composite signal and extracting a first composite optical signal comprising a first set of channels λ1, λ3, λ5, λ7, . . . λn−1 through a first output port, and a second composite optical signal comprising a second set of channels λ2, λ4, λ6, λ8, . . . λn through a second output port wherein said second set of data channels is complimentary to said first set of data channels but having a different bandwidth.
- 39. A asymmetric wavelength slicing device for demultiplexing a composite optical signal with different center-wavelengths represented by λ1, λ2, λ3, λ4, . . . λn where n is a positive integer and the wavelengths are equally spaced, comprising at least an input port and two output ports,
said composite signal being sliced into a first composite optical signal comprising a first set of channels λ1, λa, λb, λc, . . . λn−a+2 through a first output port, and a second composite optical signal comprising a second set of channels λ2, λd, λe, λf, . . . λn through a second output port wherein said second set of data channels is complimentary to said first set of data channels, but the spacing between λ1 and λa is different from the spacing between λ2 and λd.
- 40. A asymmetric wavelength slicing device for demultiplexing a composite optical signal with different center-wavelengths represented by λ1, λ2, λ3, λ4, . . . λn where n is a positive integer and the wavelengths are equally spaced, comprising:
at least an input port and two output ports, said composite signal being sliced into a first composite optical signal comprising a first set of channels λ1, λ3, λ5, λ7, . . . λn−1 through a first output port, and a second composite optical signal comprising a second set of channels λ2, λ4, λ6, λ8, . . . λn through a second output port wherein said second set of data channels is complimentary to said first set of data channels, but the bandwidth is different from the bandwidth of said first set of data channels.
- 41. The method recited in claim 37 wherein step b) is carried out by placing a wavelength slicing device in the path of said received composite optical signal, said device having at least two optical cavities having a total of at least two partially reflective surfaces, said optical cavities having a selected thickness for achieving said first and second composite optical signals.
- 42. The method recited in claim 38 wherein step b) is carried out by placing a wavelength slicing device in the path of said received composite optical signal, said device having at least two optical cavities having a total of at least two partially reflective surfaces, said optical cavities having a selected thickness for achieving said first and second composite optical signals.
- 43. The device recited in claim 39 further comprising a wavelength slicing device in the path of said received composite optical signal, said device having at least two optical cavities having a total of at least two partially reflective surfaces, said optical cavities having a selected thickness for achieving said first and second composite optical signals.
- 44. The device recited in claim 40 further comprising a wavelength slicing device in the path of said received composite optical signal, said device having at least two optical cavities having a total of at least two partially reflective surfaces, said optical cavities having a selected thickness for achieving said first and second composite optical signals.
- 45. A spectral demultiplexer for use in optical communications systems: the demultiplexer receiving a composite optical signal having spectral components in any of a plurality of wavelength channels in a continuous spectrum and generating a plurality of N output optical signals each having spectral components in 1/N of said wavelength channels in respective non-continuous spectra.
- 46. The spectral demultiplexer recited in claim 45 where N≧3.
- 47. A spectral multiplexer for use in optical communications systems; the multiplexer receiving a plurality of N input optical signals each having different discontinuous spectral components in 1/N wavelength channels of a plurality of wavelength channels in a continuous spectrum, and generating an output composite optical signal having the spectral components of all of said N input optical signals.
- 48. The spectral multiplexer recited in claim 47 wherein N≧3.
- 49. A group of optical signal demultiplexers comprising a plurality of demultiplexers each receiving a different composite optical signal having a plurality of spaced center channel wavelengths in a non-continuous spectrum and each such demultiplexer producing a plurality of individual output optical signals each having a unique one of said spaced center channel wavelengths.
- 50. A group of optical signal multiplexers comprising a plurality of multiplexers each receiving a plurality of individual input signals each such signal having a center channel wavelength which is spaced from the center channel wavelength of the other such signals; each such multiplexer producing a different composite output signal, each such different output signal comprising all of the center channel wavelengths of the individual input signals of the multiplexer from which the output signal is produced.
- 51. The apparatus recited in claim 34 further comprising an N×N switch for placing said output optical signals on N output lines in any selected order.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of pending applications Ser. No. 09/573,330 filed May 18, 2000.
Continuation in Parts (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09573330 |
May 2000 |
US |
Child |
09811136 |
Mar 2001 |
US |