Mixed-Mode Fiber Array Alignment and Coupling to Photonic Integrated Circuits

Kamil Gradkowski

doi:10.1109/TCPMT.2025.3560722

Mixed-Mode Fiber Array Alignment and Coupling to Photonic Integrated Circuits

Kamil Gradkowski

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

This study investigates alignment and coupling between a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) and a mixed-mode fiber array (FA), where one of the channels in the normally single-mode (SM) array is replaced by a multimode fiber (MMF). As a result, the tolerances of alignment are significantly relaxed. The proposed method suggests using the single-mode fiber (SMF) at the input and the MMF at the output of the PIC. In such a transmission configuration, the tolerances are relaxed by a factor of √2 (41%). As this scales with mode size, the beam-expansion mechanisms, for example, utilizing microlenses, can further significantly reduce the requirements for fabrication and packaging of photonic devices, making them more robust and cheaper to manufacture.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1156-1160
Number of pages	5
Journal	IEEE Transactions on Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology
Volume	15
Issue number	6
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1109/TCPMT.2025.3560722
Publication status	Published - 2025

Keywords

Edge couplers
expanded-beam optical connectors
microoptical devices
photonic integrated circuits (PICs)

Access to Document

10.1109/TCPMT.2025.3560722

https://hdl.handle.net/10468/17363Licence: CC BY

Cite this

@article{e069bd85fe9a4373b703962221936eac,

title = "Mixed-Mode Fiber Array Alignment and Coupling to Photonic Integrated Circuits",

abstract = "This study investigates alignment and coupling between a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) and a mixed-mode fiber array (FA), where one of the channels in the normally single-mode (SM) array is replaced by a multimode fiber (MMF). As a result, the tolerances of alignment are significantly relaxed. The proposed method suggests using the single-mode fiber (SMF) at the input and the MMF at the output of the PIC. In such a transmission configuration, the tolerances are relaxed by a factor of √2 (41\%). As this scales with mode size, the beam-expansion mechanisms, for example, utilizing microlenses, can further significantly reduce the requirements for fabrication and packaging of photonic devices, making them more robust and cheaper to manufacture.",

keywords = "Edge couplers, expanded-beam optical connectors, microoptical devices, photonic integrated circuits (PICs)",

author = "Kamil Gradkowski",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2011-2012 IEEE.",

year = "2025",

doi = "10.1109/TCPMT.2025.3560722",

language = "English",

volume = "15",

pages = "1156--1160",

journal = "IEEE Transactions on Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology",

issn = "2156-3950",

publisher = "Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.",

number = "6",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Mixed-Mode Fiber Array Alignment and Coupling to Photonic Integrated Circuits

AU - Gradkowski, Kamil

PY - 2025

Y1 - 2025

N2 - This study investigates alignment and coupling between a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) and a mixed-mode fiber array (FA), where one of the channels in the normally single-mode (SM) array is replaced by a multimode fiber (MMF). As a result, the tolerances of alignment are significantly relaxed. The proposed method suggests using the single-mode fiber (SMF) at the input and the MMF at the output of the PIC. In such a transmission configuration, the tolerances are relaxed by a factor of √2 (41%). As this scales with mode size, the beam-expansion mechanisms, for example, utilizing microlenses, can further significantly reduce the requirements for fabrication and packaging of photonic devices, making them more robust and cheaper to manufacture.

AB - This study investigates alignment and coupling between a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) and a mixed-mode fiber array (FA), where one of the channels in the normally single-mode (SM) array is replaced by a multimode fiber (MMF). As a result, the tolerances of alignment are significantly relaxed. The proposed method suggests using the single-mode fiber (SMF) at the input and the MMF at the output of the PIC. In such a transmission configuration, the tolerances are relaxed by a factor of √2 (41%). As this scales with mode size, the beam-expansion mechanisms, for example, utilizing microlenses, can further significantly reduce the requirements for fabrication and packaging of photonic devices, making them more robust and cheaper to manufacture.

KW - Edge couplers

KW - expanded-beam optical connectors

KW - microoptical devices

KW - photonic integrated circuits (PICs)

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105002821985

U2 - 10.1109/TCPMT.2025.3560722

DO - 10.1109/TCPMT.2025.3560722

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:105002821985

SN - 2156-3950

VL - 15

SP - 1156

EP - 1160

JO - IEEE Transactions on Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology

JF - IEEE Transactions on Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology

IS - 6

ER -

Mixed-Mode Fiber Array Alignment and Coupling to Photonic Integrated Circuits

Abstract

Keywords

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this