JP2000155232A - Production of optical fiber array - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a producing method of an optical fiber array which has no flaw in the optical fiber produced in the production of the optical fiber array when the core wire part of the optical fiber is pressed to a V-shape groove by a cover substrate, and which causes no breaking in the optical fiber by flaws. SOLUTION: A core wire part 2 of the top end of the optical fiber 1 where the coating is removed is mounted on a V-shape groove 6 of a V-groove substrate 5 having the V-shaped groove 6. A cover substrate 4 having a structure that only its top end 10 directly touches the core wire part 2 is used to press the core wire part 2 to the V-shape groove 6 at the top end 10. In this state, the space among the V-groove substrate 5, optical fiber 1 and cover substrate 4 is filled with an adhesive 9 to integrate. Then the top end part 11 of the optical fiber including the top end 10 of the cover substrate 4 is removed from the integrated optical fiber array.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing an optical fiber array formed by fixing a core portion at the tip of an optical fiber to a substrate.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, an optical fiber array includes a V-groove substrate having a V-groove formed thereon, and a lid substrate integrated with the V-groove substrate. With the core portion having the coating removed at the end thereof placed thereon, and the core portion pressed against the V-groove from the upper surface of the V-groove substrate with the lid substrate, an adhesive is applied to the gap between the V-groove substrate, the optical fiber, and the lid substrate. It is manufactured by filling and integrating. As the material of the V-groove substrate and the lid substrate, a hard and hardly deformable material such as glass or silicon is used in order to secure the positional accuracy of the optical fiber.

[0003]

However, in the conventional manufacturing method as described above, when the core portion of the optical fiber is pressed against the V-groove of the V-groove substrate by the lid substrate, the edge of the lid substrate or the optical fiber In some cases, the optical fiber may be damaged by a start portion of a counterbore (stepped portion) formed on the substrate for accommodating the cover portion or a projection caused by a finished state of the substrate surface.

When an optical fiber array is assembled in such a state that the fiber is damaged, a crack is easily extended from the damage due to the pulling or thermal cycle of the fiber, and the fiber is broken. There was a problem.

The present invention has been made in view of such a conventional situation, and an object thereof is to press a core portion of an optical fiber into a V-groove by a lid substrate at the time of manufacturing an optical fiber array. An object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing an optical fiber array in which there is no scratch on the optical fiber generated at the time and there is no risk of disconnection of the fiber due to the scratch.

[0006]

According to the present invention, a core portion of a V-groove substrate on which a V-groove is formed is provided with a core portion from which a coating at the tip of an optical fiber has been removed, and only the tip portion has the above-mentioned structure. At the tip of the lid substrate having a structure that directly contacts the core, the core is pressed against the V-groove, and
A gap between the groove substrate, the optical fiber, and the lid substrate is filled with an adhesive to be integrated, and a tip portion of the optical fiber array including a tip portion of the lid substrate is removed from the integrated optical fiber array. And a method for manufacturing an optical fiber array.

[0007]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the reference drawings, for the sake of simplicity, a manufacturing example of an optical fiber array in which only one optical fiber is fixed is shown. However, the present invention relates to a V-groove substrate having a plurality of V-grooves formed therein. Can be applied to the production of an optical fiber array in which a plurality of optical fibers are aligned and fixed.

As shown in the exploded perspective view of FIG. 1 and the cross-sectional view of FIG. 2, the manufacturing method of the present invention firstly inserts the optical fiber 1 into the V-groove 6 of the V-groove substrate 5 on which the V-groove 6 is formed. The core part 2 from which the coating at the tip is removed is placed. Then, the tip 10
A lid substrate 4 having a structure such that only the core wire portion 2 directly contacts the upper surface of the V-groove substrate 5,
The core portion 2 is pressed into the V-groove 6 to be fixed.

In this embodiment, the recess 12 is formed in a portion of the lower surface of the lid substrate 4 that covers the upper part of the core wire portion 2,
Only the distal end 10 is in direct contact with the core 2, and the recess 12 is spaced from the core 2 at a predetermined interval. The cover substrate 4 and the V-groove substrate 5 each have a counterbore (step portion) for accommodating the coating portion 3 of the optical fiber 1.
7 and 8 are formed.

Then, while maintaining the above state, a gap between the V-groove substrate 5, the optical fiber 1 and the cover substrate 4 is filled with an adhesive 9, and these are fixed and integrated. 3A and 3B show a fixed state of the core 2, wherein FIG. 3A shows a fixed state of the core in the II section of FIG. 2, and FIG. 3B shows a fixed state of the core in the II-II section in FIG. 2. It is. From the optical fiber array obtained in this way, the tip 1
The leading end portion 11 of the optical fiber array including 0 is removed to obtain an optical fiber array as shown in FIG. As a means for removing the tip portion 11, cutting, polishing, or the like is preferable.

In this manufacturing method, the tip 1 of the lid substrate 4
At 0, by pressing the core 2 of the optical fiber 1 against the V-groove 6, the core 2 can be assembled to the V-groove 6 with high positional accuracy. Further, since the distal end portion 11 of the optical fiber array including the distal end portion 10 of the lid substrate 4 that has been in direct contact with the core portion 2 is removed after the integration as described above, the core portion 2 is connected to the V at the distal end portion 10. Even when the core wire portion 2 is injured by the distal end portion 10 at the contact portion with the distal end portion 10 when pressed against the groove 6, the damage occurrence site is the distal end portion 1.
Removed with zero, the optical fiber array has no defects that would easily cause fiber breakage.

As an adhesive for filling the gap between the V-groove substrate 5, the optical fiber 1, and the lid substrate 4 and fixing them, a resin-based adhesive is suitably used. The type of the resin-based adhesive is not particularly limited, but is required to have sufficient hardness not to damage the optical fiber and to hold the core portion 2 of the optical fiber 1 in the V groove 6 after curing. It is preferable that the material has a low coefficient of thermal expansion and a hardness of about Shore D80. Specific examples include an epoxy adhesive. As the material of the V-groove substrate 5 and the lid substrate 4, it is preferable to use a hard and hardly deformable material such as glass or silicon as in the conventional optical fiber array.

As the cover substrate 4 used in the present invention, it is preferable that the length L in the extending direction of the optical fiber 1 of the distal end portion 10 that directly contacts the core wire portion 2 is 100 μm or more. This is because the length L of the tip 10 must be at least 10 in order to press the core 2 against the V-groove 6 and hold it with good positional accuracy.
This is because about 0 μm is required.

[0014]

As described above, according to the manufacturing method of the present invention, there is no scratch on the optical fiber caused when the core portion of the optical fiber is pressed against the V-groove by the cover substrate, and the scratch is caused by the scratch. It is possible to manufacture an optical fiber array without fear of fiber breakage.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view for explaining a manufacturing method of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the manufacturing method of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a fixed state of a core portion, and FIG.
2 shows a fixed state of the core portion in the II section of FIG. 2, and (b) shows a fixed state of the core portion in the II-II section of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of an optical fiber array manufactured by the manufacturing method of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Optical fiber, 2 ... Core part, 3 ... Coating part, 4 ... Lid substrate, 5 ... V groove substrate, 6 ... V groove, 7 ... Counterbore, 8 ... Counterbore, 9 ... Adhesive, 10 ... End of lid substrate Part, 11: tip of optical fiber array, 12: recess.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Zenjun Nakasuji 2-56 Sudacho, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture Inside Nihon Insulators Co., Ltd. (72) Eiji Kitakami 2nd Sudacho, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya-shi, Aichi No. 56 Japan Insulators Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 2H036 KA02 LA03 LA07 LA08

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A core portion from which a coating at the tip of an optical fiber has been removed is placed on the V-groove of a V-groove substrate having a V-groove formed thereon.
The gap between the V-groove substrate, the optical fiber, and the lid substrate in a state where the core portion is pressed against the V-groove at the tip portion of the lid substrate having a structure in which only the distal end directly contacts the core portion. A method of manufacturing an optical fiber array, comprising: filling an adhesive into the optical fiber array; and removing an end portion of the optical fiber array including an end portion of the lid substrate from the obtained optical fiber array. 2. The method of manufacturing an optical fiber array according to claim 1, wherein the length of the tip portion in direct contact with the core portion in the optical fiber extending direction is 100 μm or more.