Accurate interchannel pitch control in graded-index circular-core polymer parallel optical waveguide using the...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Optical Engineering
• Photonics

Background:

• Polymer optical waveguides are crucial for data transmission.
• Precise fabrication of graded-index (GI) circular cores is challenging.
• High-speed parallel optical communication requires advanced waveguide designs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a simple and accurate method for fabricating GI-core polymer optical waveguides.
• To demonstrate the feasibility of high-density parallel signal transmission using these waveguides.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Mosquito method, a microdispenser-based technique.
• Fabricated GI-core waveguides with controlled diameters and pitches (250-, 125-, and 62.5-μm).
• Confirmed pitch accuracy through high connectivity with commercial multimode fiber (MMF) ribbons.

Main Results:

• Successfully fabricated GI-core polymer optical waveguides with controlled pitches.
• Demonstrated high connectivity with 125-μm pitch MMF ribbons.
• Achieved 11.3 Gbps × 12 Channel parallel signal transmission through a 125-μm pitch GI-core waveguide for the first time.

Conclusions:

• The Mosquito method is a simple and effective technique for fabricating GI-core polymer optical waveguides.
• This fabrication method supports high-density parallel optical communication.
• The demonstrated parallel transmission performance represents a significant advancement in optical interconnects.