Photonic devices are disclosed including a first cladding layer, a first electrical contact comprising a first lead coupled to a first dielectric portion, a second electrical contact comprising a second lead coupled to a second dielectric portion, a waveguide structure comprising a slab layer comprising a first material, and a second cladding layer. The slab layer may be coupled to the first dielectric portion of the first electrical contact and the second dielectric portion of the second electrical contact. The first dielectric portion and the second dielectric portion may have a dielectric constant greater than a dielectric constant of the first material.

An electro-optic combiner includes a polarization splitter and rotator (PSR) that directs a portion of incoming light having a first polarization through a first optical waveguide (OW). The PSR rotates a portion of the incoming light having a second polarization to the first polarization to provide polarization-rotated light. The PSR directs the polarization-rotated light through a second OW. Each of the first and second OW's has a respective combiner section. The first and second OW combiner sections extend parallel to each other and have opposite light propagation directions. A plurality of ring resonators is disposed between the combiner sections of the first and second OW's and within an evanescent optically coupling distance of both the first and second OW's. Each of ring resonators operates at a respective resonant wavelength to optically couple light from the combiner section of the first OW into the combiner section of the second OW.

A photonic polarization splitter rotator (PSR) includes a substrate, a first optical waveguide disposed in the substrate on a first layer, the first optical waveguide having a curved portion between a first end of the first optical waveguide and a second end of the first optical waveguide, and a second optical waveguide disposed in the substrate on a second layer, above the first layer, the second optical waveguide having a substantially rectangular shape and longitudinally arranged between the first end of the first optical waveguide and the second end of the first optical waveguide.

A photonic integrated circuit (PIC) in which some optical waveguides have laterally tilted waveguide cores used to implement passive polarization-handling circuit elements, e.g., suitable for processing polarization-division-multiplexed optical communication signals. Different sections of such waveguide cores may have continuously varying or fixed lateral tilt angles. Different polarization-handling circuit elements can be realized, e.g., using different combinations of end-connected untilted and laterally tilted waveguide-core sections. In some embodiments, laterally tilted waveguide cores may incorporate multiple-quantum-well structures and be used to implement active circuit elements. At least some embodiments beneficially lend themselves to highly reproducible fabrication processes, which can advantageously be used to achieve a relatively high yield of the corresponding PICs during manufacture.

An apparatus includes polarization beamsplitters that each separate incoming and outgoing optical signals having different polarizations. The apparatus also includes directionally-dependent polarization rotation optical assemblies that each maintain a polarization of one of the incoming and outgoing optical signals and to rotate a polarization of another of the incoming and outgoing optical signals. The apparatus further includes a third polarization beamsplitter that combines the outgoing optical signals to produce transmit optical signals and separate receive optical signals to produce the incoming optical signals.

A fiber optics polarization controller comprises: an optical fiber and multiple polarization stages. A first stage comprises: a motor having a hollow shaft spanning from a proximal end to a distal end along a rotational axis; and a fiber paddle affixed to and adapted to rotate with the hollow shaft. The fiber paddle has a ring-shaped body with two openings arranged opposite to each other around the ring-shaped body. A first opening of the fiber paddle is connected to the distal end of the hallow shaft substantially collinear with the rotational axis of the motor. The optical fiber is arranged spanning through the hollow shaft, entering the fiber paddle through the first opening, following around the ring-shaped body to form a fiber loop, and exiting the ring-shaped body through the second opening. A second stage is arranged in series with the first stage.

An integrated on-chip polarization rotator splitter (26) comprises a waveguide polarization rotator (54) having a first and a second layer (62) that form a rib waveguide (66) together and are both made of silicon nitride. The first layer (62) has a first, a second and a third section. The first layer (64) has a first width (w.sub.1) that increases in the first section (S1), is constant in the second section (S1) and decreases in the third section (S3). The second layer (64) has a second width (w.sub.2) that continuously increases. The polarization rotator splitter (26) further includes a waveguide polarization splitter (61) comprising a first strip waveguide (71) and a second strip waveguide (72) that are separated by a gap (74). The first and second strip waveguides (71, 72) are also made of silicon nitride. The first and second strip waveguide (71, 72) form an asymmetric evanescent direction coupler.

An optical input polarization management device includes a polarization splitter and rotator (PSR) that directs a portion of incoming light having a first polarization through a first optical waveguide (OW). The PSR rotates a portion of the incoming light having a second polarization to the first polarization so as to provide polarization-rotated light. The PSR directs the polarization-rotated light through a second OW. Light within the first and second OW's is input to a first two-by-two optical splitter (2×2OS). A first phase shifter (PS) is interfaced with either the first or second OW. Light is output from the first 2×2OS into a third OW and a fourth OW. Light within the third and fourth OW's is input to a second 2×2OS. A second PS is interfaced with either the third or fourth OW. Light is output from the second 2×2OS into a fifth OW for further processing.

A light field display device comprising at least one multiplexed light field display module, the multiplexed light field display module comprising a view image generator, a waveguide, and a set of shutters spatially distributed along the waveguide, the view image generator optically coupled to the waveguide, the waveguide optically coupled to each shutter, the view image generator operable to generate a set of beams of light from one of a set of view images, the waveguide configured to transmit the set of beams along its length via internal reflection, each shutter operable to be switched between a closed state and an open state, the closed state of the shutter configured to prevent the beams from escaping the waveguide, the open state of the shutter configured to allow the beams to escape the waveguide, the module operable to generate, over time, the set of beams from a different one of the set of view images, and to open, over time, a different subset of the set of shutters, thereby to allow the set of beams escaping from the subset to correspond to a different one of the set of view images.

An optical coupling device can include a first birefringent layer having opposing first and second surfaces. The first birefringent layer can split incident light received at the first surface into first and second beams. The first and second beams can have respective polarization orientations that are orthogonal to each other. The first birefringent layer can propagate the first and second beams along respective first and second paths within the first birefringent layer to the second surface. The first and second beams can be spatially separated at the second surface. A redirection layer facing the second surface of the first birefringent layer can include first and second grating couplers configured to respectively redirect the first and second beams to propagate within the redirection layer as respective third and fourth beams. In some examples, the third and fourth beams can have respective polarization orientations that are parallel to each other.