Patent attributes
A photonic integrated circuit (PIC) having two tapered planar waveguide cores that are separated from one another by a relatively narrow gap, with each of these waveguide cores having a respective portion thereof located on a tapered planar slab core. The relative positions of the slab core and the two waveguide cores are such that the light crossing between the two waveguide cores undergoes a polarization rotation between the TM and TE polarizations with a relatively low insertion loss. The corresponding waveguide structure can be used as a relative polarization-rotating splitter for light propagating in one direction or as a relative polarization-rotating combiner for light propagating in the opposite direction. At least some embodiments of the disclosed PIC can advantageously be fabricated using a complementary metal oxide semiconductor technology and/or a conventional silicon-on-insulator platform.
