JPH01193704A - Optical waveguide component and its fusion splicing method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To decrease the connection loss and to improve the strength by arranging a reinforcing member in parallel to one side or both sides of a core on a substrate at the connection part of a core and an optical waveguide, and forming the core and reinforcing member so that they can be fusion-spliced to the optical waveguide. CONSTITUTION:Reinforcing members 3 made of the same material with the core 2, e.g. quartz are arranged on both sides of the rectangular core 2 on the substrate 1 at intervals in parallel to the core 2. Further, the end surfaces of the core 2 and reinforcing members 3 are treated by polishing previously for fusion-splicing to an optical fiber. The reinforcing members 3 are formed in a triangular shape in the traveling direction of a light wave so as to attenuate the energy in the clad of the optical fiber gradually, and the size of the end surface is so determined according to the size of the clad of the optical waveguide to be fusion-spliced. Consequently, sufficient mechanical strength is obtained at the connection part of the optical waveguide component and optical waveguide and the connection loss is reduced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to an optical waveguide component and a fusion splicing method thereof.

(Prior Art) FIG. 4 shows a four-wave optical multiplexer/demultiplexer as an example of a conventional optical waveguide component. A filter guide is installed at each branch.

11b and llc are wavelength selection m inserted into the grooves, respectively.
The interference film filters 9a, 9b, and 9C are fixed, and the optical waveguide 8 is also fixed. The interference film filter 9a transmits the wavelength λ8, the interference film filter 9b transmits the wavelengths λ1 and λ4, and the interference film filter 9cC transmits the wavelength λ4. When connecting the optical fiber 7 to this optical multiplexer/demultiplexer, insert the optical core 7 into the groove of the fiber guide 10 provided on the substrate 1, and connect the core of the optical fiber 7 and the core of the optical waveguide 8. After alignment, the optical fiber 7 and the optical waveguide 8 are bonded together with an adhesive and fixed onto the substrate l. Similar to this, in conventional optical waveguide components, an optical fiber is attached using an adhesive after an optical waveguide is originally formed on a substrate.

(Problem B to be solved by the invention) However, in conventional optical waveguide components, the core of the optical waveguide component and the optical fiber are simply bonded on the substrate with an adhesive, so the optical core diameter is usually about 1 μm. The core eccentricity cannot be adjusted, and due to butting and adhesive reinforcement, the connection between the optical fiber and the core of the optical waveguide component is lost and the connection stability is inferior to that achieved by fusion splicing. There is.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides an optical waveguide component that can be fusion-spliced with an optical waveguide such as an optical fiber, has core alignment, has low splice loss, and has improved strength, and its fusion splice. The purpose is to provide a connection method.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an optical waveguide component having a core of a waveguide connected to an optical waveguide on a substrate, in which the core and the optical waveguide are connected to each other. An optical waveguide component is provided, in which a reinforcing member is arranged in parallel to one or both sides of the core on the substrate at the connection part, and the core and the reinforcing member are formed so as to be fusion-connectable to the optical waveguide, and further, In an optical waveguide component having a core on a substrate and a reinforcing member arranged in parallel on one or both sides of the core at a connecting portion between the core and the optical waveguide, the end faces of the core and the reinforcing member can be fusion-connected. a step of removing the coating of the optical waveguide and treating the end face; a step of core-aligning the optical waveguide and the core of the optical waveguide component; and a step of aligning the optical waveguide, the core, and the reinforcing member. A method for fusion splicing optical waveguide components is provided, which comprises a step of heating and fusing.

(Function) A reinforcing member is disposed close to the core of the optical waveguide component, and the core and reinforcing member are configured to be fusion-connectable to the optical waveguide.
The core and reinforcing member are simultaneously fused and connected to the optical waveguide.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described in detail based on the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the optical waveguide component of the present invention. In fusion splicing between optical fibers, the optical fibers have a core diameter of about 10 μm and a cladding diameter of about 25 μm, which ensures the mechanical strength of the spliced part.
In a quartz optical waveguide component, which is a normal optical waveguide component, the cladding is very small and has a size of several μm to several tens of μm, so the fused portion of the optical waveguide component is at most 10 μm to 20 μm.
It is only about μm in size and has poor mechanical strength. Therefore, in the embodiment shown in FIG.
On both sides of the core 2, reinforcing members 3 made of the same material as the core 2, such as quartz, are arranged parallel to the core 2 with a gap between them. The reinforcing member 3 may be arranged only on one side of the core 2. The end face of the core 2, which is an optical waveguide such as a quartz optical waveguide, and the end face of the reinforcing member 3 are flush with the end face of the substrate 1 on the same plane.

The end faces of the core 2 and the reinforcing member 3 are subjected to polishing and other end face treatments in advance in preparation for fusion splicing with the optical fiber. As shown in FIG. 1, it is formed in a triangular shape with respect to the traveling direction, and the size of the end face is determined depending on the size of the cladding of the optical waveguide to be fusion-spliced. The reinforcing member 3 is made of the same material as the core 2, and if the reinforcing member 3 is made of the same material as the core 2 on the substrate l at the same time when the core is made, there is no need to add a new process during manufacturing. In this way, the reinforcing member 3 for fusion is installed as necessary at the fusion splicing location of the optical waveguide component to the optical waveguide such as an optical fiber on the substrate.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the optical waveguide component of the present invention.
The structure is shown in which the core 2 and the reinforcing member 3 are integrated to increase mechanical strength. FIG. 3 shows another embodiment in which the end face of the core 2' and the end face of the reinforcing member 3' protrude from the end face of the substrate 1 in order to facilitate fusion splicing with the optical waveguide. There is. In this example, core 2
It is also possible to fill the gap between the core and the reinforcing member 3 with a cladding member.Furthermore, although not shown, the end face of the core and the end face of the reinforcing member are not on the same plane, so that the core and the reinforcing member It is also possible to increase the strength by creating a structure in which the parts are not separated at the fusion splice.

Next, a method for fusion splicing optical waveguide components according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. First, necessary end face treatment such as polishing of the core 2 and reinforcing member 3 of an optical waveguide component such as a quartz optical waveguide having a core 2 and reinforcing member 3 on a substrate l is performed. After removing the coating from the end of the optical fiber and cutting the core wire to make the cut surface smooth and uniform, the core 6 of the optical fiber and the core 2 of the optical waveguide component are aligned, or core aligned. Positioning the optical fiber with respect to the optical waveguide component.

At this time, the cladding 5 of the optical fiber is butted against the reinforcing member 3 of the optical waveguide component, as shown in FIG.
Next, the butt joint of the optical fiber and the optical waveguide component is heated by a laser light waveguide, arc discharge, etc., and the core 6 of the optical fiber is fused to the core 2, and the cladding 5 is also fused and connected to the reinforcing member 3. This ensures the mechanical strength of the joint, but if it is desired to further increase the strength, the fusion splice can be reinforced by further applying an adhesive.

Further, as shown in the cross section in FIG. 5(A), the optical fiber is cracked so that the tip of the optical fiber has approximately the same thickness as the core 2 and reinforcing member of the optical waveguide component.

It is also possible to grind the optical fiber 5 obliquely from above and below to form a wedge-shaped cross-section in the vertical direction, and then abut the optical fiber and the optical waveguide component and fusion-splice them.

With this configuration, fusion splicing becomes easier.

FIG. 5(B) is a plan view of FIG. 5(A).

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the present invention, in an optical waveguide component having a core of a waveguide connected to an optical waveguide on a substrate, the substrate at a connection portion between the core and the optical waveguide. A reinforcing member is arranged in parallel on one side or both sides of the upper core, and the core and the reinforcing member are formed to be fusion-connectable to the optical waveguide, so that the optical waveguide component and the optical waveguide can be fusion-connected. Therefore, it is possible to achieve the effect that the core of the optical waveguide can be aligned with respect to the optical waveguide component, and furthermore, the core and the connection part between the core and the optical waveguide are provided on the substrate parallel to one or both sides of the core. a step of processing the end faces of the core and the reinforcing member in an optical waveguide component having a reinforcing member disposed thereon so as to be able to be fusion-spliced; a step of removing a covering of the optical waveguide and processing the end face; The connecting portion between the optical waveguide component and the optical waveguide is formed by a process of core alignment with the core of the optical waveguide component, and a step of heating and fusing the optical waveguide with the core and the reinforcing member. It has the following effects: high physical strength, low connection loss, and high reliability.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 and 2 are perspective views showing one embodiment of the optical waveguide component of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a plan view showing another embodiment of the optical waveguide component of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the optical waveguide component of the present invention. FIG. 5(A) is a partial cross-sectional plan view showing a connecting portion between a component and an optical waveguide, and FIG.
B) is a plan view of FIG. 5(A), and FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a conventional optical waveguide component. l... Substrate, 2... Core, 3... Reinforcement member, 4...
... Craft component, 5... Clad, 6... Core,
7... Optical fiber, 8... Optical waveguide, 9a, 9b,
9c... Interference film filter, 10... Fiber guide, 11... Filter guide.

Claims (9)

[Claims] (1) In an optical waveguide component having a core of a waveguide connected to an optical waveguide on a substrate, a reinforcing member is provided in parallel to one or both sides of the core on the substrate at the connection portion between the core and the optical waveguide. An optical waveguide component, characterized in that the core and the reinforcing member are formed so as to be fusion-connectable to the optical waveguide. (2) The optical waveguide component according to claim 1, wherein end faces of the substrate, the core, and the reinforcing member are formed flush with each other. (3) The optical waveguide component according to claim 1, wherein a gap between the core and the reinforcing member on the substrate is filled with a cladding material. (4) The optical waveguide component according to claim 1, wherein end faces of the core and the reinforcing member protrude from an end face of the substrate. (5) The optical waveguide component according to claim 4, wherein the end face of the core and the end face of the reinforcing member are not on the same plane. (6) The optical waveguide component according to claim 1, wherein the core and the reinforcing member are made from the same material and at the same time in the same process. (7) Welding the end faces of the core and the reinforcing member in an optical waveguide component having a core on a substrate and a reinforcing member arranged in parallel on one or both sides of the core at the connection portion between the core and the optical waveguide. a step of treating the optical waveguide so that it can be connected; a step of removing the covering of the optical waveguide and treating the end face; a step of core-aligning the optical waveguide and the core of the optical waveguide component; and a step of core-aligning the optical waveguide, the core, and the reinforcement. A method for fusion splicing optical waveguide components, the method comprising the step of heating and fusing the components. (8) The method for fusion splicing optical waveguide components according to claim 7, further comprising the step of forming a cladding in a wedge shape around the core before the end face treatment step of the optical waveguide. (9) The method of fusion splicing optical waveguide components according to claim 7, wherein the step of providing the reinforcing member is a step of creating the reinforcing member on the substrate at the same time as the core is created using the same material as the core.