KVH Industries, Inc.
Method and Apparatus For Control and Suppression of Stray Light in a Photonic Integrated Circuit

Abstract:

In a photonic integrate circuit (PIC) architecture, non-guided stray light that is radiated from components, junctions, discontinuous and scattering points in an integrated optic device, may be received by an integrated waveguide structure in the path of the stray radiation. The integrated waveguide structure may comprise a plurality of collectors that are configured to collect the non-guided stray light from the radiating source. Each of the collectors may comprise an integrated waveguide with a front end that is tapered to increase the mode-field size and pointed toward the stray light source, and with a back end that is connected to a secondary waveguide. The collectors are placed in the path of the stray light and aligned in the propagation direction of the stray light. The collected stray light is guided to a light energy damper through the second waveguide for converting light energy into heat.