JP2014109729A - Optical element connection method and optical element connection device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical element connection method which is capable of connecting the relative angles of the end surfaces of two optical elements in parallel with high accuracy.SOLUTION: Light obliquely emitted to one of a first end surface 2a and a second end surface 4a from the same light source 7 is reflected to the first end surface 2a and the second end surface 4a and the surface angle of the light after passing through between the first end surface 2a and the second end surface 4a is previously measured. A first surface angle θwhen the first end surface 2a and the second end surface 4a are parallel with each other is measured and then, a relative position between a first optical element 2 and a second optical element 4 is corrected by the position control of first and second support parts 3 and 5, so that a second relative surface angle θbetween the first end surface 2a and the second end surface 4a becomes the first surface angle θ.

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical element connection method and an optical element connection apparatus.

  In the optical receiving module, a structure having a planar lightwave circuit (PLC) element in which an optical fiber is optically connected is known. The PLC element has a function of collecting light incident from an optical fiber with a lens and irradiating the photodiode.

  As a method for optically connecting a PLC element and an optical fiber, there is a method in which an end face of an optical fiber inserted into a ferrule is opposed to a parallel end face on the light incident side of the PLC element and connected via an optical adhesive. . In this case, if the end faces of both the PLC element and the ferrule are not parallel, the end faces are shifted due to curing shrinkage of the optical adhesive, or the relative position of the PLC element and the optical fiber fluctuates due to temperature changes. To do.

  In order to align such end faces in parallel, it is known to use, for example, a prism having a right angle mirror. In this case, a right angle mirror is inserted between the light incident end face of the PLC element and the end face of the optical fiber, and the angles of the two mirrors are inclined to 45 degrees and 135 degrees with respect to the light incident end face of the PLC element, respectively. In this state, light parallel to the light incident end face of the PLC element is irradiated to the two reflecting faces of the right angle mirror, and the reflected light is irradiated to both end faces of the optical fiber and the PLC element, and reflected by those end faces. The returned light is reflected again by the right angle mirror and returned to the laser light source side. Then, the incident angles of the two lights returning to the laser light source side are measured.

  Thereby, the angles of the optical fiber end face and the light input end face of the PLC element are measured based on the two light incident angles on the laser light source side, and the direction of the optical fiber is adjusted so that these angles are equal. As a result, the light incident end of the PLC element and the end faces of the optical fiber are parallel to each other, so that the end face of the optical fiber is moved perpendicularly to the light incident end face of the PLC element and fixed with an optical adhesive. .

JP 2005-37632 A

  According to the method of aligning the end faces of both the optical fiber and the PCL element in parallel using the prism having the right angle mirror as described above, the light irradiated to the end face of the optical fiber is transmitted through the inside and is opposite. It is reflected by the end face on the side and returns to the laser light source side. As a result, the light reflected by the end face on the opposite side of the ferrule becomes noise when measuring the above-mentioned angle, hinders high-precision measurement of the light incident angle, and the accuracy of arranging the ferrule and the PCL element in parallel is high. Will be reduced.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an optical element connection method and an optical element connection apparatus that can connect the end faces of two optical elements in a highly accurate parallel state.

According to one aspect of the present embodiment, in the connection method of an optical element in which the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element are opposed to each other, the first optical element The first end face of the second optical element and the second end face of the second optical element are held opposite to each other at a predetermined distance to be in a holding state, and at least in the holding state, the first optical element When the first end face of the second optical element is parallel to the second end face of the second optical element, the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element Light is emitted from a light source so as to reflect both end faces of the first light element, and the light reflected from both the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element is received. To measure a surface angle between the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element. Adjusting the inclination of the first end face of the first optical element with respect to the second end face of the second optical element based on the result of the measurement, and the first end face of the first optical element and the There is provided an optical element connection method for connecting the second end face of the second optical element.
The objects and advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. It is to be understood that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention.

  According to the present embodiment, the relative angles of the end faces of the two optical elements can be set with high accuracy while suppressing the light transmitted through the first optical element and the second optical element from being reflected and returned inside. It is possible to measure and connect the end faces of these optical elements in a highly accurate parallel state.

FIG. 1 is a side view showing an example of the basic structure of the optical element connection device according to the embodiment. FIG. 2 is a side view showing an example of the internal structure of the autocollimator used in the optical element connection device according to the embodiment. FIGS. 3A to 3D are side views showing an example of the optical element connection method according to the embodiment. FIGS. 4A, 4 </ b> B, and 4 </ b> C are XY coordinate diagrams illustrating an example of an incident position and an angle of light incident on the autocollimator in the optical element connection method according to the embodiment. 5A and 5B are side views showing another example of the optical element connecting method according to the embodiment. FIGS. 6A and 6B are perspective views illustrating the operation of the optical element connection device according to the embodiment. 7A, 7 </ b> B, and 7 </ b> C are a plan view, a side view, and an enlarged side view showing an example of a receiving module having optical elements connected by the optical element connecting method and the optical element connecting apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG.

  Embodiments will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, similar components are given the same reference numerals.

FIG. 1 is a side view showing an example of an optical element connecting apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
The optical element connection device 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a first element support portion 3 that supports, for example, a PLC element as the first optical element 2, and a second ferrule that supports, for example, an optical fiber inserted as the second optical element 4. And an element support portion 5. The second element support unit 5 is attached to a tilt correction moving unit 6 that corrects the tilt of the second optical element 4. The second end surface 4a of the second optical element 4 supported by the second element support unit 5 is corrected in inclination by the inclination correction moving unit 6, and is disposed opposite to the first end surface 2a of the first optical element 2. The

  On one side of the second optical element 4 (right side in the figure), an autocollimator 7 is disposed as a light angle measuring unit. The autocollimator 7 emits laser light obliquely toward the first end face 2a of the first optical element 2, and the first end face 2a, the second measurement end face of the second optical element 4, and the mirror body 8 on the side thereof. Is reflected back to the first end face 2a, and the light reflected by the first end face 2a is incident again, and the incident angle is measured.

  The optical axis of the light incident / exit end 7n of the autocollimator 7 is tilted at an angle of, for example, 15 to 75 degrees with respect to the normal of the first end face 2a of the first optical element 2. The light emission angle and the light incident angle are shown as an angle with respect to the perpendicular line of the first end face 2a of the first optical element 2, but may be an angle with respect to a line parallel to the first end face 2a.

  As illustrated in FIG. 2, the autocollimator 7 has a structure in which a semiconductor laser 7a, a circular slit 7b, a beam splitter 7c, and a collimator 7d are sequentially arranged along the light emission direction. Furthermore, it has a photoelectric conversion element 7e which is a light receiving element that receives incident light reflected by the beam splitter 7c in a planar (two-dimensional) manner. For example, a CCD element is used as the photoelectric conversion element 7e.

  The signal output terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 7e in the autocollimator 7 is connected to the arithmetic unit 9 as shown in FIG. The calculation unit 9 has a structure for obtaining the incident angle of the light reflected by the first end face 2a by detecting the position of the light incident on the photoelectric conversion element 7e via the collimator 7d and the beam splitter 7c in the xy coordinate system. ing.

  The signal output terminal of the calculation unit 9 is connected to a main control unit 10 that controls the inclination correction moving unit 6 based on the calculation data. The main control unit 10 operates the tilt correction moving unit 6 and the second element support unit 5 based on the incident angle of the incident light obtained by the calculation unit 9, and the direction of the second end face 4 a of the second optical element 4. It has a structure that changes. The calculation unit 9 and the main control unit 10 may be a computer including a CPU, a storage unit, and the like.

  On the other side of the second optical element 4 (on the left side in the figure), it is emitted from the autocollimator 7 and is reflected in a zigzag order in the order of the first end surface 2a, the second end surface 4a, and the first end surface 2a. A first mirror body 8 that further reflects the propagated light and returns it to the first end face 2a is disposed.

  Next, an optical element connection method for connecting the first end face 2a of the first optical element 2 and the second end face 4a of the second optical element 4 using the optical element connection apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. This will be described with reference to d).

  First, as illustrated in FIG. 3A, the light incident / exit end 7n of the autocollimator 7 is directed to the first end face 2a of the first optical element 2 with a space therebetween, and the perpendicular to the second end face 2a is set. The angle of the light output axis of the autocollimator 7 is adjusted so that the angle of the optical axis of the autocollimator 7 is Z degrees (Z <90). Further, the first mirror body 8 is arranged with the angle of the reflection surface of the first mirror body 8 with respect to the light emission axis of the autocollimator 7 set to, for example, 1/2 of the angle Z (= Z / 2 degrees). However, the incident angle Z is set to an angle at which the light reflected by the first end surface 2a and the mirror body 8 can return to the light incident / exit end 7n of the autocollimator 7 again, as will be described later.

  Next, the main control unit 10 operates the first element support unit 3 to move the first optical element 2, and the first control unit 10 moves the first optical element 2 to the intersection of the perpendicular of the reflection surface of the mirror body 8 and the light emission axis of the autocollimator 7. The position of the 1st optical element 2 is adjusted so that the end surface 2a may correspond. In this state, when the first end surface 2a is irradiated with a light beam from the autocollimator 7, the light beam is reflected by the first end surface 2a and reaches the mirror body 8, and the light reflected there returns to the first end surface 2a, The reflected light returns to the light incident / exit end 7 n of the autocollimator 7.

In this case, at the light incident / exit end 7n of the autocollimator 7, as shown in the XY coordinate system of FIG. 4A, a light beam is emitted from the center point 0 of the XY coordinates where the light emission axes of the autocollimator 7 intersect. The Then, the light beam, as shown in FIG. 3 (a), is emitted obliquely to the first end surface 2a on the light emission angle theta _e. Also, light reflected by the first mirror surface body 8, as shown in FIG. 3 (a), incident on the light input and output end 7n of the autocollimator 7 is reflected at an angle theta ₁ with the first end surface 2a. In this case, light enters the light spot P shown in FIG. 4A at the light incident / exit end 7n of the autocollimator 7. Database incident position at its point P, detected by the CCD element 7d in the autocollimator 7 shown in FIG. 2, the incident angle theta ₁ of light at point P is showing the relationship between the surface angle and the XY coordinates _Is calculated by the calculation unit 9 and is divided into an x-axis component θ _x1 and a y-axis component θ _y1 .

Subsequently, the control circuit 10 that has acquired the data of the incident angle θ ₁ from the calculation unit 9 controls the tilt correction moving unit 6 to move the second optical element 4 to the second optical element 4 as shown in FIG. 1 Move closer to the optical element 2. In this case, the position of the second end face 4a of the second optical element 4 is set in the path of light emitted from the autocollimator 7 and reflected by the first end face 2a. According to another aspect, the light reflected in the order of the first end surface 2a, the second end surface 4a, the first end surface 2a, and the mirror body 8 is reflected back through the reverse path, and can finally enter the autocollimator 7. The second end face 4a of the second optical element 4 is disposed on the surface. In this case, the 1st end surface 2a and the 2nd end surface 4a are arrange | positioned through a clearance gap without contacting each other, and are adjusted so that it may become as parallel as possible.

Next, a light beam in the autocollimator 7 emission angle theta _e in the first end surface 2a. Thereby, the light reflected by the first end face 2a propagates and is reflected by the second end face 4a, is further returned to the first end face 2a, is reflected again, and reaches the mirror body 8. The mirror body 8 reflects light back to the first end surface 2a. The light that reaches the first end surface 2 a and is reflected is further reflected by the second end surface 4 a and the first end surface 2 a and returned to the light incident / exit end 7 n of the autocollimator 7. In this case, the surface angle of the light incident on the autocollimator 7 is θ ₂ as shown in FIG.

In this case, the light enters and exits 7n of the autocollimator 7 is incident on the light spot Q shown in FIG. Database its incident position of light on the point Q is sensed by the CCD element 7d in the autocollimator 7 shown in FIG. 2, the incident angle theta ₂ at point Q is showing the relationship between the incident angle and the XY coordinates _Is calculated by the calculation unit 9 and is divided into an x-axis component θ _x2 and a y-axis component θ _y2 .

When the light beam emitted from the autocollimator 7 is reflected by the second end face 4a and not reflected, that is, when FIGS. 3A and 3B are compared, the incident angle θ _{1 of the} light incident on the autocollimator 7 is compared. , Θ ₂ is θ _d . The angle difference θ _d is four times the angle difference θ ₀ between the first end face 2a and the second end face 4a, that is, θ _d = | θ ₁ −θ ₂ | = 4θ ₀ . Therefore, when the first end face 2a and the second end face 4a are parallel and θ ₀ = 0, the light spot Q and the light spot P coincide with each other.

Next, the main control unit 10 operates the tilt correction moving unit 6 based on the incident angle data input from the calculation unit 9, and as shown in FIGS. 3 (c) and 4 (c), the light spot The inclination of the optical axis of the second optical element 4 in the x direction and the y direction is adjusted so that the angular difference between Q and the light spot P is eliminated. Thereby, when the light spot Q and the light spot P coincide, the first end face 2a and the second end face 4a are parallel to each other. In this state, the surface angle θ _{2 that} is reflected by the second end surface 2 a of the first optical element 2 and enters the autocollimator 7 is equal to the incident angle θ ₁ described above.

  Next, an optical adhesive 11, for example, an epoxy adhesive is supplied onto the second end surface 2 a in a region where the first end surface 2 a of the first optical element 2 faces. Subsequently, the tilt correction moving unit 6 is operated under the control of the main control unit 10 to move the second optical element 4 parallel to the optical axis thereof as shown in FIG. The second end face 4a is brought close to the first end face 2a of the first optical element 2, and the adhesive 11 is thinned. As a result, the second end face 4a and the first end face 2a are connected via the ultrathin adhesive 11, and the adhesive 11 protrudes from the outer periphery thereof so that the first optical element 2 and the second optical element 4 are connected to each other. Is done.

  According to the method as described above, a light path is set which irradiates light from the autocollimator 7 to the first end face 2a obliquely, reflects the first end face 2a and the first mirror body 8, and returns to the autocollimator 7. ing. Then, in the light path, the second end face 4a of the second optical element 4 is arranged in the light path reflected by the first end face 2a and reaching the first mirror body 8, and the light to the autocollimator 7 is thereby obtained. The first and second end faces 2a and 4a are made parallel by correcting the angle of the second end face 4a based on the change in the incident angle and changing the direction of the second end face 4a to a position where the change in the angle difference becomes zero. ing.

  Thereby, compared with the conventional case using a prism provided with a right angle mirror, it is possible to reduce noise light reflected inside the first and second optical elements 2 and 4 and returned to the autocollimator 7. Moreover, the inclination of the first optical element 2 is corrected based on the difference in the incident angle of the incident light to the autocollimator 7 when the second end face 4a is placed on the path of the light reflected from the first end face 2a and when it is not placed. So there is no need to calibrate the absolute angle. Furthermore, since a measuring instrument such as a prism is not inserted between the first optical element 2 and the second optical element 4, when the first optical element 2 and the second optical element 4 are adjusted to be parallel to each other, Since the distance between the optical elements can be reduced, the subsequent optical elements can be easily connected to each other. As a result, the optical axes of the first and second optical elements 2 and 4 are hardly displaced from each other due to curing shrinkage and temperature conversion when the optical adhesive 11 is cured.

By the way, in the above optical element connection method, as illustrated in FIG. 5A, the reflective surface of the first mirror body 8 may be arranged in parallel with the perpendicular of the first end face 2 a of the first optical element 2. Good. Thereby, the reflection number of the light between the 1st mirror body 8, the 1st, 2nd optical elements 2 and 4 can be reduced. In this case, when emitting a light beam at an angle theta _e from the autocollimator 7 toward the first end surface 2a, light reflected by the first end surface 2a is further reflected by the mirror body 8, the light of the autocollimator 7 light incidence The light directly enters the exit end 7n. In this case, the incident angle θ ₁ is equal to the outgoing angle θ _e .

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), the second optical element 4 is moved toward the first optical element 2, and the second end face 4a is brought close to the first end face 2a so as to approach the first specular body. The light irradiated from 8 toward the autocollimator 7 is blocked by the second end face 4a. As a result, the light reflected by the mirror body 8 is reflected by the second end face 4a and applied to the first end face 2a, and further reflected by the first end face 2a to be incident on the light incident / exit end 7n of the autocollimator 7 at an angle θ. ₂ is incident. The light beam incident on the autocollimator 7 is detected within the CCD element 7d, the incident angle theta ₂ is calculated by the calculation unit 9 on the basis of a database showing a relationship between the incident angle and the XY coordinates. Here, when the difference between the _two incident angles θ ₁ and θ ₂ is θ _d , θ _d = | θ ₁ −θ ₂ | = 2θ ₀ is obtained. Note that θ ₀ is an angle of the second end face 4a with respect to the first end face 2a.

  In such a method of measuring the incident angle difference, unless the height of the portion irradiated with light in the second end face 4a is set in advance, the autocollimator 7 can be used even if the inclination of the second end face 4a is the same. The incident position of the light at fluctuates. Therefore, it is preferable that the height of the portion irradiated with light in the second end face 4a is determined to be a constant value h.

Thereafter, the main control unit 10 controls the tilt correction moving unit 6 and the second element support unit 5 to adjust the tilt of the optical axis of the second optical element 4 so that θ _d = 0. In this state, the surface angle θ _{2 that} is reflected by the second end surface 2 a of the first optical element 2 and enters the autocollimator 7 is equal to the incident angle θ ₁ described above. Then, the 1st end surface 2a and the 2nd end surface 4a are connected through the optical adhesive agent 11 by the method similar to the above.

In the above optical element connection method, light irradiated obliquely from the same light source to one of the first end face 2a and the second end face 4a is reflected by the first end face 2a and the second end face 4a and passes between them. the surface angle of the light is measured, the relative second first after the end surface 2a and the second end surface 4a is measured in advance a first surface angle theta ₁ of parallel case, the first end surface 2a and the second end surface 4a face angle theta ₂ is first relative position of the first optical element 2 and the second optical element 4 so that the first surface angle theta _1, corrected by the position control of the second support portions 3 and 5 After that, the first end face 2a and the second end face 4a are connected with an adhesive while maintaining the parallel state, and the surface angle is measured by placing a light receiving element instead of the first mirror body 8. Also good.

  As described above, when the light beam is irradiated from the autocollimator 7 to the first end surface 2a, the mirror body may be reflected instead of being irradiated directly. The optical element connecting apparatus 1 having such a structure will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the optical element connecting apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 6A, the autocollimator 7 is attached to be movable in the front-rear direction, the left-right direction, and the up-down direction by the moving unit 17 with the light incident / exit end 7n facing downward. Yes. A cylindrical portion 19 having a cavity for propagating a light beam is attached to the light incident / exit end 7 n below the autocollimator 7, and a second mirror body 18 is attached to the lower end of the cylindrical portion 19. The second mirror body 18 is supported so that the angle of the reflecting surface can be changed, and is adjusted so that the light emitted from the autocollimator 7 can be obliquely applied to the first end surface 2 a of the first optical element 2.

  A rod-like mirror body support portion 20 disposed horizontally above the second element support portion 5 is attached to the side portion of the cylindrical portion 19 in a horizontally long manner, and the first mirror body 8 is attached to the tip thereof. The first mirror body 8 is supported by the mirror body support portion 20 so that the angle of the reflection surface can be changed.

  The second element support part 5 is attached to the front part of the inclination correction moving part 6 below the autocollimator 7, and the second optical element 4 is supported thereon. A first element support 3 is disposed in front of the second element support 5, and a first optical element 2 is attached thereon.

  In the optical element connecting apparatus 1, as shown in FIG. 6B, the position of the autocollimator 7 is adjusted by the moving unit 17, and the angles of the first mirror surface body 8 and the second mirror surface body 18 are adjusted. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 3, the light beam emitted from the autocollimator 7 is reflected by the second mirror 18, and is incident on the first end surface 2 a of the first optical element 2 from an oblique direction and reflected light. Can be reflected by the first mirror body 8 and returned to the autocollimator 7. Further, the tilt correction moving unit 6 is controlled so that the first end face 2a of the first optical element 2 and the second end face 4a of the second optical element 4 are opposed to each other and connected in parallel by the method shown in FIG. can do.

  A PLC element is used as the first optical element 2 to be connected using the optical element connection apparatus 1 described above, and a ferrule with an end of an optical fiber inserted is used as the second optical element 4, and these optical elements are It is mounted in the package 21 of the optical receiver module illustrated in FIG. One end of the first optical waveguide 22b is exposed at the light incident end face 22a of the PLC element 22 which is the first end face 2a. The first optical waveguide 22b is branched into second and third optical waveguides 22c and 22d toward the light output end.

  The alignment of the optical axes of the first optical waveguide 22b and the optical fiber 23 is performed when the end surfaces of the ferrule 24 and the PLC element 22 are connected by the above method. For example, the end face 24a of the ferrule 24 and the light incident end face 22a of the PLC element 22 are made parallel by the above method. Thereafter, light is guided from the optical fiber 23 toward the first optical waveguide 22b of the PLC element 22, while the light receiving elements 25a and 25b are arranged at the light emitting ends of the second or third optical waveguides 22c and 22d. Receive light with. Then, the position in the plane direction is determined at the position where the intensity of light received by the light receiving elements 25a and 25b is maximized, and then the adhesive between the end faces of the PLC element 22 and the ferrule 24 is cured and connected. . In this case, the light receiving elements 25a and 25b are

  The optical fiber 23 attached in the ferrule 24 is drawn out through a hole at one end of the package 21. Further, as shown in FIG. 6C, which is an enlarged view of a portion surrounded by a broken line in FIG. 6B, the light incident end portion of the first optical waveguide 22b is the first support portion 22e and the substrate having a low refractive index. 22f. The light exit ends of the second and third branch waveguides 22b and 22c are sandwiched between the second support portion 22g having a low refractive index and the substrate 22f, and these end portions are the first and second lenses, respectively. 25a and 25b.

  In the package 21, third and fourth lenses 26a and 26b are disposed in front of the first and second lenses 25a and 25b. In addition, first and second light receiving elements 27a and 27b are arranged in front of the third and fourth lenses 26a and 26b. The first and second light receiving elements 27 a and 27 b are attached to the optical element electronic circuit 28. The optical element electronic circuit 28 is connected to leads 29 and 30 attached to the outside of the package 21.

  Even if the optical receiver module having such a structure is placed in an environment where temperature changes occur, the PLC element 22 and the end faces 22a and 24a of the ferrule 24 connected by the above method are connected in parallel. It is difficult for the optical elements of the PLC element 22 and the ferrule 24 to shift due to temperature changes.

  All examples and conditional expressions given here are intended to help the reader understand the inventions and concepts that have contributed to the promotion of technology, such examples and It is interpreted without being limited to the conditions, and the organization of such examples in the specification is not related to showing the superiority or inferiority of the present invention. While embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail, it will be understood that various changes, substitutions and variations can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

(Supplementary note 1) In a method of connecting an optical element in which the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element are connected to face each other, the first end face of the first optical element; The second end face of the second optical element is held opposite to a position separated by a predetermined distance to be in a holding state, and at least in the holding state, the first end face of the first optical element Reflecting both the first end surface of the first optical element and the second end surface of the second optical element when the second end surface of the second optical element is parallel to the second end surface. The first optical element by emitting light from a light source and receiving the light reflected from both the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element. A surface angle between the first end face of the second optical element and the second end face of the second optical element is measured, and based on the result of the measurement. Adjusting the inclination of the first end face of the first optical element with respect to the second end face of the second optical element to adjust the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element. An optical element connection method for connecting the second end face.
(Supplementary Note 2) The light is emitted from a light angle measuring unit that emits the light and receives the light, and outputs a light angle difference between the emitted light and the received light. When the emitted light is at a position where the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element are parallel at least in the holding state, After reflecting both the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element, the light is received via a reflector that irradiates the light angle measuring unit with the emitted light. And adjusting the inclination of the first end face of the first optical element with respect to the second end face of the second optical element based on the light angle measured by the optical angle measuring unit. Appendix 1 connecting the first end face and the second end face of the second optical element. Optical device connection.
(Additional remark 3) The said optical angle measurement part is an autocollimator, The optical element connection method of Additional remark 2 characterized by the above-mentioned.
(Supplementary Note 4) In the light emitting direction of the light incident / exiting end of the light angle measuring unit, the mirror body is reflected to irradiate the light to either the first end face or the second end face. The optical element connection method according to Supplementary Note 2 or Supplementary Note 3, wherein
(Supplementary note 5) Supplementary notes 1 to 3, wherein the optical axes of the first optical element and the second optical element are aligned with each other through light from the first optical element into the second optical element. The optical element connection method according to any one of the above.
(Supplementary note 6) Any one of Supplementary notes 1 to 5, wherein the first optical element is a planar lightwave circuit having an optical waveguide, and the second optical element is a ferrule to which an optical fiber is attached. The optical element connection method as described in one.
(Supplementary Note 7) When the light is received by the light angle measurement unit, the difference between the light emission angle and the incident angle of the light angle measurement unit is the first end surface of the first optical element and the first angle. 6. The optical element connection method according to any one of appendices 2 to 5, wherein the difference between the angles of the second end faces of the two optical elements is four times or twice.
(Additional remark 8) The 1st element support part which supports a 1st optical element, The 2nd element support part which supports the 2nd optical element which has a 2nd end surface which connects the 1st end surface of a 1st optical element, At least 1st The position where the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element are parallel in a state where the first optical element and the second optical element are held by the first element support portion and the second element support portion. A light emitting portion for emitting light so as to reflect both the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element, the first end face of the first optical element, and the second light A measuring unit for measuring a surface angle between the first end surface of the first optical element and the second end surface of the second optical element by receiving light reflected from both of the second end surfaces of the element by the light receiving unit; The first element supporting portion is moved based on the measurement result of the first portion, and the first optical element first relative to the second end face of the second optical element is moved. By adjusting the tilt of the surface, the optical element connection device comprising a control unit for connecting the second end surface of the first end face and the second optical element of the first optical element.
(Additional remark 9) The said light-receiving part and the said light-projection part are provided in the light angle measurement part, The optical element connection apparatus of Additional remark 8 characterized by the above-mentioned.
(Supplementary note 10) Either the supplementary note 8 or the supplementary note 9, wherein the first optical element is a planar lightwave circuit having an optical waveguide, and the second optical element is a ferrule to which an optical fiber is attached. The optical element connection device according to one.
(Supplementary note 11) Any one of Supplementary notes 8 to 10, wherein the first optical element is a planar lightwave circuit having an optical waveguide, and the second optical element is a ferrule to which an optical fiber is attached. The optical element connection device according to one.
(Additional remark 12) It has the optical-axis alignment part which aligns the optical axis of the said 1st optical element and the said 2nd optical element through light in the said 2nd optical element from the said 1st optical element, It is characterized by the above-mentioned. The optical element connection device according to any one of supplementary notes 8 to 11.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Optical element connection apparatus 2 1st optical element 2a 1st measurement end surface 3 1st element support part 4 2nd optical element 4a 2nd measurement end surface 5 2nd element support part 6 Inclination correction moving part 7 Autocollimator 8, 18 Mirror surface Body 9 Calculation unit 10 Main control unit 11 Optical adhesive 22 PLC element 23 Optical fiber 24 Ferrule

Claims (3)

In the connection method of the optical element in which the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element are connected to face each other,
Holding the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element opposite to each other at a predetermined distance, and setting the holding state;
At least in the holding state, when the first end surface of the first optical element and the second end surface of the second optical element are in a parallel position, the first optical element of the first optical element is Light is emitted from the light source so as to reflect both the end face and the second end face of the second optical element;
By receiving the light reflected from both the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element, the first end face of the first optical element and the first end face of the first optical element are received. Measuring the surface angle of the two optical elements with the second end face;
An inclination of the first end face of the first optical element with respect to the second end face of the second optical element is adjusted based on the measurement result, and the first end face of the first optical element and the first end face of the first optical element are adjusted. Connecting the second end face of two optical elements;
Optical element connection method. The light is emitted from a light angle measurement unit that emits the light and receives the light, and outputs a light angle difference between the emitted light and the received light.
When the emitted light is at a position where the first end surface of the first optical element and the second end surface of the second optical element are parallel to each other, at least in the holding state. In addition, after reflecting both the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the two optical elements, light passing through a reflector that irradiates the light angle measuring unit with the emitted light is reflected. Receive light,
Based on the light angle measured by the light angle measurement unit, the inclination of the first end face of the first optical element with respect to the second end face of the second optical element is adjusted, and the first optical element Connecting the first end face and the second end face of the second optical element;
The optical element connection method according to attachment 1. A first element support for supporting the first optical element;
A second element support portion for supporting a second optical element having a second end face connecting the first end face of the first optical element;
In a state where at least the first optical element and the second optical element are held by the first element support part and the second element support part, the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element are parallel to each other. A light emitting portion that emits light so as to reflect both the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element when in the position,
By receiving light reflected from both the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element by the light receiving unit, the first end face of the first optical element and the second end face of the second optical element A measuring unit for measuring the surface angle of
Based on the measurement result by the measurement unit, the first element support unit is moved to adjust the inclination of the first end face of the first optical element with respect to the second end face of the second optical element, and A control unit for connecting the first end face and the second end face of the second optical element;
An optical element connecting device having

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