SBIR-STTR Award

The switching of optical signals is an enabling capability for the fiber backbone of modern communication networks. Reasonably priced products with the required bandwidth and speed are still unavailable after years of effort and the application of many interesting technologies. Most work to-date has focused on the development of high speed, very expensive technologies. These products have experienced varying degrees of market rejection. Pixel Communications proposes to develop a Photonic Switch capable of routing light without first translating the optical signal to electrical format. The proposed switch is a bulk optic, critical angle device that takes advantage of total internal reflection and the controllable birefringence of a non-linear material to guide collimated light. The unique aspect of the simple yet elegant (and patented) design is the application of liquid crystal material to the switching device. Polarized light is guided into and out of the device by collimating lenses at the fiber-switch interfaces. The individual switch element will be "stacked to form large switch arrays. Phase I of the effort will focus on materials development and technology integration. Phases I and II will pave the way for the Photonic Switch becoming technically validated, commercially practical, and operationally robust.

The switching of optical signals is an enabling capability for the fiber backbone of modern communications networks. Reasonably priced products with the required bandwidth and speed are still unavailable after years of effort and the application of many interesting technologies. These products have experienced varying degrees of market rejection. SpectraSwitch proposes to develop, fabricate and test production prototypes of a photonic switching device. This device, capable of routing light without first translating the optical signal to electrical format, is a bulk optic, critical angle device that couples the phenomenon of liquid crystal birefringence, evanescence, and total internal reflection to the mechanisms required to control light. This unique approach results in products with higher switching speeds, greater reliability, and lower power consumption than current devices. Additionally, the devices will cost significantly less than other photonic switches currently on the market. The proposed effort will lead directly to the production of the SpectraSwitch family of photonic devices. This product family will include taps, couplers attenuators, switches, and wave division multiplexers (WDMs).