A light module includes an optical element and a base on which the optical element is mounted. The optical element has an optical portion which has an optical surface; an elastic portion which is provided around the optical portion such that an annular region is formed; and a pair of support portions which is provided such that the optical portion is sandwiched in a first direction along the optical surface and in which an elastic force is applied and a distance therebetween is able to be changed in accordance with elastic deformation of the elastic portion. The base has a main surface, and a mounting region in which an opening communicating with the main surface is provided. The support portions are inserted into the opening in a state where an elastic force of the elastic portion is applied.

The imaging system has a photonic circuit chip that includes multiple cores that each includes a port through which an outgoing optical signal exits the photonic circuit chip. Each of the cores is configured such that the outgoing signal exits the photonic circuit chip traveling toward a location that is above or below the photonic circuit chip. Additionally, each of the cores is configured to combine light from one of the outgoing signals with a reference signal so as to generate a signal beating at a beat frequency. The imaging system also includes electronics that use the beat frequencies from the cores to calculate data that indicates a radial velocity and/or distance between the system and one or more objects located outside of the system.

A LIDAR system includes a LIDAR chip configured to output a LIDAR output signal. The LIDAR chip includes a redirection component and alternate waveguides. The redirection component receives an outgoing LIDAR signal from any one of multiple alternate waveguides. The LIDAR output signal includes light from the outgoing LIDAR signal. A direction that the LIDAR output signal travels away from the LIDAR chip is a function of the alternate waveguide from which the redirection component receives the outgoing LIDAR signal.

A large scale, non-blocking fiber optic cross-connect system consists of multiple stages, including a central multifiber per connection system. The number of ports of this cross-connect system scales to over 10,000, in an incremental, modular, field expandable approach. Two separate arrays of “edge” cross-connect systems using KBS methodology are positioned on opposite sides of a central core cross-connect system, wherein the core system is comprised of switchable blocks of multi-fiber trunk lines, each terminated in a single connector that is reconfigurable by robotic means. The trunk lines between edge cross-connects are controlled by a trunk line management system to provision/deprovision blocks of multiple connections at a time in a “core” cross-connect circuit block between edge cross-connects. The core system is configured to controllably interconnect the physically separate edge cross-connect systems which concurrently direct data along selected paths to and from the central core circuit block.

In various embodiments, the beam parameter product and/or beam shape of a laser beam is adjusted by directing the laser beam across a path along the input end of a cellular-core optical fiber. The beam emitted at the output end of the cellular-core optical fiber may be utilized to process a workpiece.

An apparatus for network switching may include a plurality of input ports, a plurality of output ports, and a subset of pre-configured interconnection patterns including some but not all of the possible interconnection patterns between the input ports and the output ports. The apparatus may be communicatively coupled to a network via the input ports and/or the output ports. The apparatus may be configured to switch to a first interconnection pattern and a second interconnection pattern from the subset of pre-configured interconnection patterns. The first interconnection pattern and the second interconnection pattern may each provide a set of connections between the input ports and the output ports. At least one signal between the input ports and the output ports may be transmitted via the first interconnection pattern and/or the second interconnection pattern. Related methods are also provided.

A large-scale single-photonics-based optical switching system that occupies an area larger than the maximum area of a standard step-and-repeat lithography reticle is disclosed. The system includes a plurality of identical switch blocks, each of is formed in a different reticle field that no larger than the maximum reticle size. Bus waveguides of laterally adjacent switch blocks are stitched together at lateral interfaces that include a second arrangement of waveguide ports that is common to all lateral interfaces. Bus waveguides of vertically adjacent switch blocks are stitched together at vertical interfaces that include a first arrangement of waveguide ports that is common to all vertical interfaces. In some embodiments, the lateral and vertical interfaces include waveguide ports having waveguide coupling regions that are configured to mitigate optical loss due to stitching error.

The present disclosure provides an improved method of parking a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) mirror in an array of MEMS mirrors to protect against single high voltage channel failures in a driver. Two separate voltages are applied to each MEMS mirror to move and park the mirror out of a camera sensor field of view in a servo system. For example, a first voltage may be applied in a positive X direction and a second voltage may be applied in a positive Y direction which will move the mirror in a diagonal direction. If one of the high voltage channels fail, the mirror will still be parked and outside of the camera sensor field of view. If a high voltage channel fails, the servo system can park a mirror affected by the failure in an opposite corner. Moreover, if 2-axis parking is not feasible, the mirror can use single-voltage parking.

A fast optical (with or without a photonic crystal) switch is fabricated/constructed, utilizing a phase transition material/Mott insulator, activated by either an electrical pulse (a voltage pulse or a current pulse) and/or a light pulse and/or pulses in terahertz (THz) frequency of a suitable field strength and/or hot electrons. The applications of such a fast optical switch for an on-demand optical add-drop subsystem, integrating with (a) a light slowing/light stopping component (based on metamaterials and/or nanoplasmonic structures) and (b) with or without a wavelength converter are also described.

A diagnostic voltage or current path can be used for each MEMS actuator control channel to detect and diagnose faults in the actuator control signal path. Multiple measurement points provide additional capabilities of isolating faults among multiple subassemblies or components in the control signal path. The diagnostic voltage or current path uses ADC(s) and multiplexers to monitor multiple control channels and/or multiple measurement points in each control channel. Digitized voltages, or currents in the case of magnetic actuators, read from the diagnostic ADC are compared to expected values to detect and isolate faults.