Abstract: An optical assembly provides dispersion control, modelocking, spectral filtering, and/or the like in a laser cavity. For example, the optical assembly may comprise a diffraction grating pair arranged to temporally and spatially disperse a beam on a forward pass through the optical assembly, a reflective device at an end of the optical assembly, and a focusing optic arranged to create a beam waist at the reflective device. The beam waist created at the reflective device may cause the beam to be inverted on a reverse pass through the optical assembly, and a temporal dispersion and a spatial dispersion of the beam may be doubled on the reverse pass through the optical assembly to form a temporally and spatially dispersed output from the optical assembly.

Abstract: An optical fiber includes a core configured to transmit laser light and a cladding that surrounds the core. In some implementations, an outer surface region of the cladding is tapered or comprises a plurality of notches. The outer surface region of the cladding is configured to cause an aiming beam that falls incident upon the outer surface region of the cladding at a first incidence angle to fall incident upon an outer surface region of the core at a second incidence angle to allow the aiming beam to couple into the core.

Abstract: High power, high speed VCSEL arrays are employed in unique configurations of arrays and sub-arrays. Placement of a VCSEL array behind a lens allows spatial separation and directivity. Diffusion may be employed to increase alignment tolerance. Intensity modulation may be performed by operating groups of VCSEL emitters at maximum bias. Optical communications networks with high bandwidth may employ angular, spatial, and/or wavelength multiplexing. A variety of network topologies and bandwidths suitable for the data center may be implemented. Eye safe networks may employ VCSEL emitters may be paired with optical elements to reduce optical power density to eye safe levels.

Abstract: An optical receiver includes an optical amplifier that is optically connected to a local oscillator (LO) and a plurality of optical hybrid mixers of the optical receiver and that is electrically connected to a controller. The optical amplifier is configured to receive an optical LO signal from the LO, receive a voltage value associated with an optical input signal of the optical receiver, control a power of the optical LO signal based on the voltage value, and provide, after adjusting the power of the optical LO signal, the optical LO signal to the plurality of optical hybrid mixers. The controller, is configured to determine the voltage value associated with the optical input signal and cause the voltage value to be provided to the optical amplifier.

Abstract: A die attachment material may include an ultra-violet (UV) curable resin and silver particles to attach a chip to a submount, where the silver particles are positioned within the UV curable resin. A method may include heating the die attachment material to obtain the UV curable resin on sintered silver particles, where at least a portion of the die attachment material is position between a chip and a submount. The method may further include irradiating, with UV light, the UV curable resin to obtain a polymer on the sintered silver particles. The polymer may form a layer on the sintered silver particles.

Abstract: An optical device may include an array of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) having a design wavelength, each VCSEL having an emission area. The optical device may include a first metal layer, substantially covering the array, a second metal layer substantially covering the first metal layer, and an electrical isolation layer, between the first metal layer and the second metal layer, that includes vias for electrically connecting portions of the first metal layer and portions of the second metal layer. The optical device may include a dielectric disposed over the emission area of each VCSEL. A variation in a thickness of the dielectric across at least approximately 90% of an area of the dielectric may be less than approximately 2% of the design wavelength. A depth of a well around the emission area may be equal to at least approximately 10% of a width of the emission area.

Abstract: A pluggable optical module may include a substrate. The pluggable optical module may include a compressible sliding thermal interface disposed on the substrate to contact a riding heatsink. The compressible sliding thermal interface material may be compressed to fill interstices between a first surface of the substrate and a second surface of the riding heatsink. The compressible sliding thermal interface may protrude from the first surface of the substrate such that insertion of the pluggable optical module into a cage compresses the compressible sliding thermal interface to achieve a threshold thermal boundary resistance.

Abstract: An electrical-optical modulator may include one or more optical waveguides to propagate one or more optical signals in a direction of propagation. An optical waveguide of the one or more optical waveguides may include a time delay section, a first modulation section preceding the time delay section in the direction of propagation, and a second modulation section following the time delay section in the direction of propagation. The first modulation section and the second modulation section may be configured to be associated with opposite modulation polarities, and the time delay section may be configured to delay a phase of the one more optical signals relative to the first modulation section. The electrical-optical modulator may include one or more signal electrodes to propagate one or more signals in the direction of propagation in order to modulate the one or more optical signals through electrical-optical interaction.

Abstract: An electrical-optical modulator may include a first section configured for a first electrical-optical interaction between one or more optical waveguides and one or more signal electrodes. The electrical-optical modulator may include a second section configured to increase or decrease a relative velocity of signals of the one or more signal electrodes to optical signals of the one or more optical waveguides relative to the first section. The electrical-optical modulator may include a third section configured for a second electrical-optical interaction between the one or more optical waveguides and the one or more signal electrodes according to an opposite modulation polarity relative to the first section.

Abstract: An optical fiber device may include an optical waveguide to guide a laser output from a first end of the optical waveguide to a second end of the optical waveguide. The optical fiber device may include a fiber telescope optically coupled to the second end of the optical waveguide to modify the laser output. The fiber telescope may include a first graded-index optical element, a first facet of the first graded-index optical element being fused to the second end of the optical waveguide; and a second graded-index optical element, a first facet of the second graded-index optical element being fused to a second facet of the first graded-index optical element.

Abstract: Systems, methods, and devices are described for in-situ testing of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs), VCSEL arrays or laser diodes (each a laser). Testing may comprise bias voltage measurements of one or more lasers. Embodiments may comprise one of a laser, a driver circuit providing a bipolar drive to the laser, and a sensing circuit to measure and/or monitor damage or degradation of the laser. The bipolar drive may comprise a pulsed forward bias output configured to produce a light output during an on-time of the laser, and a pulsed reverse bias output during an off-time of the pulsed forward bias output. The pulsed outputs may comprise a variable, chirped frequency. One or more of a reverse leakage current, and a junction temperature may be measured to monitor a state of health of the laser.

Abstract: An optical fiber device may include a core including a primary section and a secondary section. The secondary section may include at least one insert element inserted within the primary section at an off-center location with respect to a center of the primary section. The secondary section may twist about an axis of the optical fiber device along a length of the optical fiber device. A rate of twist at which the secondary section twists about the axis may increase from a first end of the optical fiber device toward a second end of the optical fiber device. The secondary section being twisted about the axis may cause an optical beam, launched at the first end of the optical fiber device, to be at least partially converted to a rotary optical beam at the second end of the optical fiber device.

Abstract: An amplifier assembly may include a first heat sink plate that includes a first channel, a second heat sink plate that includes a second channel, and an amplifier rod disposed in the first channel and the second channel. The second heat sink plate may be connected with the first heat sink plate such that the first channel and the second channel align. The amplifier rod may be connected to the first heat sink plate and the second heat sink plate by a non-eutectic solder.

Abstract: An optical fiber may include a first core, a second core, and a cladding surrounding the first core and the second core. The second core may be at an off-center location with respect to a center of the optical fiber, or the second core may include an azimuthally nonuniform section at the off-center location. The second core may twist about an axis of the optical fiber along a length of the optical fiber, and the second core being twisted about the axis may cause an optical beam, launched into the second core at a first end of the optical fiber, to be at least partially converted to a rotary optical beam at a second end of the optical fiber.

Abstract: A testing device may include a stage associated with holding an emitter wafer during testing of an emitter. The stage may be arranged such that light emitted by the emitter passes through the stage. The testing device may include a heat sink arranged such that the light emitted by the emitter during the testing is emitted in a direction away from the heat sink, and such that a first surface of the heat sink is near a surface of the emitter wafer during the testing but does not contact the surface of the emitter wafer. The testing device may include a probe card, associated with performing the testing of the emitter, that is arranged over a second surface of the heat sink such that, during the testing of the emitter, a probe of the probe card contacts a probe pad for the emitter through an opening in the heat sink.

Abstract: A device may determine at least one metric related to a plurality of laser pulses associated with a Q-switched laser. The device may determine a statistical metric for the at least one metric related to the plurality of laser pulses. The device may determine that the statistical metric satisfies a threshold level of deviation of the at least one metric related to the plurality of laser pulses from a baseline value for the at least one metric. The device may indicate laser degradation of the Q-switched laser based on determining that the statistical metric satisfies the threshold.

Abstract: An optical pump may include a polarization element to separate pump light into a first component beam and a second component beam, wherein the polarization element is to separate the pump light such that the first component beam has a first polarization and the second component beam has a second polarization that is different from the first polarization. The optical pump may include a gain medium to absorb a portion of the first component beam and a portion of the second component beam, and transmit an unabsorbed portion of the first component beam and an unabsorbed portion of the second component beam. The optical pump may include one or more optical elements to at least partially isolate a pump source from the unabsorbed portion of the first component beam and the unabsorbed portion of the second component beam.

Abstract: A graded index fiber having a refractive index profile that causes a beam to be re-imaged in the graded index fiber with a regular period may include a set of bends that have a bend period matched to or nearly matched to a pitch of the graded index fiber. For example, the set of bends may be formed in the graded index fiber using one or more bending devices that include one or more protrusions that have a periodicity matched to or nearly matched to a pitch of the graded index fiber. A first section of the one or more bending devices may be actuated to move towards a second section of the one or more bending devices such that the one or more protrusions cause the bends to be formed in the graded index fiber.

Abstract: A wafer may comprise a substrate layer and a plurality of vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) formed on or within the substrate layer. A respective trench-to-trench distance associated with the plurality of VCSELs may vary across the wafer based on a predicted variation of an oxidation rate of an oxidation layer across the wafer.

Abstract: An optical device may comprise an optical element holder that holds an optical element in an internal portion of the optical element holder, wherein the optical element holder includes a protruding feature with a contact portion that holds the optical element in the internal portion of the optical element holder. The optical device may additionally comprise the optical element, wherein an edge of the optical element includes a chamfered portion that contacts the contact portion of the protruding feature of the optical element holder to allow the protruding feature of the optical element holder to hold the optical element in the internal portion of the optical element holder.