阅读说明：本技术 一种基于级联分光结构的半导体光放大器阵列 (Semiconductor optical amplifier array based on cascade light splitting structure ) 是由 陈敬业 时尧成 戴道锌 于 2021-02-09 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明公开了一种基于级联分光结构的半导体光放大器阵列。包括依次连接的M级功分器、半导体光放大器和N级功分器。M级功分器和N级功分器中间放置半导体光放大器阵列,N级功分器的数量与半导体光放大器对应,实现单个波导的功率放大,通过选择M和N的大小,优化调节半导体光放大器阵元的数目,进而实现光束总功率的放大。本发明基于光波导技术,具有器件结构紧凑、易于大规模集成、成本低等特点,本发明的光放大器阵列可优化调节阵元数,有效增加输出光功率,减小单个波导承受的光功率,并且降低工艺实现难度。(The invention discloses a semiconductor optical amplifier array based on a cascade light splitting structure. The power divider comprises an M-level power divider, a semiconductor optical amplifier and an N-level power divider which are sequentially connected. The semiconductor optical amplifier array is placed between the M-level power divider and the N-level power divider, the number of the N-level power dividers corresponds to that of the semiconductor optical amplifiers, power amplification of a single waveguide is achieved, the number of array elements of the semiconductor optical amplifiers is optimized and adjusted by selecting the size of M and the size of N, and then amplification of the total power of light beams is achieved. The optical amplifier array is based on the optical waveguide technology, has the characteristics of compact device structure, easy large-scale integration, low cost and the like, can optimize and adjust the array element number, effectively increases the output optical power, reduces the optical power born by a single waveguide, and reduces the process realization difficulty.)

1. A semiconductor optical amplifier array based on a cascade light splitting structure is characterized by comprising an M-level power divider (1), a semiconductor optical amplifier (2) and an N-level power divider (3) which are sequentially connected;

the semiconductor optical amplifier (2) array is placed between the M-level power divider (1) and the N-level power divider (3), the number of the N-level power dividers (3) corresponds to that of the semiconductor optical amplifiers (2), power amplification of a single waveguide is achieved, the number of array elements of the semiconductor optical amplifiers (2) is optimally adjusted by selecting the sizes of M and N, and then amplification of total power of light beams is achieved.

2. A semiconductor optical amplifier array based on a cascade light splitting structure according to claim 1, wherein the M-stage power splitter (1) is provided with a single input at the front, the N-stage power splitter (3) is provided with a phase modulator array at the back, and 2 are placed in the power splitting path^MA semiconductor optical amplifier (2).

3. A semiconductor optical amplifier array based on a cascade optical splitting structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein the M-stage power splitter (1) equally divides the energy of the input optical field into 2^MRespectively input into a semiconductor optical amplifier (2) array, the total number of array elements is 2^MA plurality of;

the N-stage power divider (3) equally divides the light field 2^MThe light of each semiconductor optical amplifier array element is divided into 2 equal parts^NDividing and then connecting the phase modulator array, the total number of array elements is 2^M+NAnd (4) respectively.

Technical Field

The invention belongs to the field of photonic integrated devices, and particularly relates to a semiconductor optical amplifier array based on a cascade light splitting structure.

Background

The importance of the laser radar in the field of unmanned driving is increasingly prominent, and the traditional mechanical laser radar comprises a mechanical rotating part, is large in size, high in assembly cost, not beneficial to large-scale production and limited in application of small-sized platforms such as vehicles.

After the concept of the optical phased array is provided, a novel solution is provided for realizing the all-solid-state laser radar, and meanwhile, silicon-based optoelectronic integration has the advantages of CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) process compatibility, large-scale integration, low power consumption, low cost and the like. Therefore, the on-chip phased array chip based on the silicon optical integration technology will promote the commercialization process of the all-solid-state laser radar.

The invention provides a semiconductor optical amplifier array based on a cascade light splitting structure. The semiconductor optical amplification arrays are optimally placed at any level, the balance problem of the quantity of the semiconductor optical amplification arrays and the output power is solved, the number of the arrays is effectively reduced under a certain power requirement, the problem of limited application of the power amplifier is solved, the process difficulty is reduced, and the yield of chips is improved.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention is based on the requirement of solid laser radar, and aims at solving the problems of the existing silicon-based optical phased array laser radar which need to be solved: the output optical power is limited by the on-chip optical device losses and the maximum tolerable optical power on-chip. Semiconductor optical amplifiers can be placed in the optical path to obtain high power beam output, but the power approach based on a single semiconductor optical amplifier is limited by the problem of saturation power. In order to solve the problems, the invention provides a semiconductor optical amplifier array based on a cascade light splitting structure.

A semiconductor optical amplifier array based on a cascade light splitting structure comprises an M-level power divider (1), a semiconductor optical amplifier (2) and an N-level power divider (3) which are sequentially connected.

The semiconductor optical amplifier (2) array is placed between the M-level power divider (1) and the N-level power divider (3), the number of the N-level power dividers (3) corresponds to that of the semiconductor optical amplifiers (2), power amplification of a single waveguide is achieved, the number of array elements of the semiconductor optical amplifiers (2) is optimally adjusted by selecting the sizes of M and N, and then amplification of total power of light beams is achieved.

Wherein, the M-level power divider (1) is prepositive and single input, the N-level power divider (3) is postpositioned with a phase modulator array, and the power dividing path is provided with 2^MA semiconductor optical amplifier (2).

The M-level power divider (1) equally divides the energy of an input light field into 2^MRespectively input into a semiconductor optical amplifier (2) array, the total number of array elements is 2^MAnd (4) respectively.

The N-stage power divider (3) equally divides the light field 2^MThe light of each semiconductor optical amplifier array element is divided into 2 equal parts^NDividing and then connecting the phase modulator array, the total number of array elements is 2^M+NAnd (4) respectively.

The invention has the beneficial effects that:

(1) the invention is based on the optical waveguide technology and has the characteristics of compact device structure, easy large-scale integration, low cost and the like.

(2) The optical amplifier array can optimize and adjust the array element number, effectively increase the output optical power, reduce the optical power born by a single waveguide and reduce the process realization difficulty.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a semiconductor optical amplifier array based on a cascaded optical splitting structure according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an optical phased array transmitting chip according to an embodiment of the present invention;

wherein: the system comprises a 0-laser light source, a 1-M-level power divider, a 2-semiconductor optical amplifier, a 3-N-level power divider, a 4-phase modulator and a 5-optical antenna.

Detailed Description

The present invention will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a semiconductor optical amplifier array based on a cascaded optical splitting structure according to the present invention, which sequentially includes, from left to right: the device comprises an M-level power divider 1, a semiconductor optical amplifier 2 and an N-level power divider 3. The semiconductor optical amplifier 2 array is placed between the M-level power divider 1 and the N-level power divider 3, the number of the N-level power dividers 3 corresponds to that of the semiconductor optical amplifiers 2, power amplification of a single waveguide is achieved, the number of array elements of the semiconductor optical amplifiers 2 is optimized and adjusted by selecting the size of M and the size of N, and then amplification of total power of light beams is achieved.

The field of on-chip phased array laser radar and the like has two key problems: the total loss of the on-chip scale integrated optical device is large, and the bearable optical power value of the on-chip optical waveguide is small. In order to obtain high-power light beam output, a semiconductor optical amplifier needs to be placed in an optical path, but is based on single semiconductor lightThe power approach of the amplifier is limited by the problem of saturation power. The traditional method is to place an amplifier array at the last stage of the power divider, and the array element number is 2 in total^M+NThe invention is characterized in that the light amplification array is optimally arranged at any stage of the cascade power divider, and the array element number is 2^MThe number of the light amplification arrays can be adjusted according to index requirements such as output light power and the like, the number of the light amplification arrays is effectively reduced, and the process difficulty of chip integration is reduced.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of an optical phased array transmitting chip according to an embodiment of the present invention. It can be seen from the figure that, from left to right, a laser light source 0 is coupled and input, power is equally divided and input into an array of semiconductor optical amplifiers 2 through a first M-cascade power divider 1, optical power amplification is performed, and required amplification power can be backward derived from an output optical power index, so that the numerical value of M and the gain coefficient of the optical amplifier are reasonably selected, and the optical power borne by each waveguide and the array element number of the semiconductor optical amplifier are remarkably reduced through optimization. Then the optical power is input into the power divider of the N-stage cascade, and further the optical power is input into the phase modulator 4 in an equal division manner, and the phase modulator 4 can arbitrarily adjust the phase in the waveguide. The independent light fields are output in a coherent beam combination in a far field through the array of optical antennas 5. One scanning angle direction can be obtained by changing different phase differences through the phase modulator, and the other angle can change the wavelength to realize scanning by utilizing the characteristics of the optical antenna. Therefore, the above embodiments can be implemented to realize a light amplification array applicable to an on-chip phased array laser radar.

When the waveguide semiconductor optical amplifier array structure is used for a laser radar, the waveguide semiconductor optical amplifier array structure, a laser light source 0 at the front end, a phase modulator 4 at the rear end and an optical antenna 5 form a complete on-chip laser radar transmitting system, power amplification is realized through the amplifier array, the detection distance of the radar is increased, the complexity of the whole chip is reduced, the waveguide semiconductor optical amplifier array structure has the characteristics of moderate number of devices, large total power gain, low loss, low cost, low integration difficulty and the like, and the power requirement of an on-chip optical phased array in the application of the actual laser radar is met.