Patent ID: 7817882
Filing Date: 2010-10-19
Classification: G02B,H01S

Abstract:
1. An optical apparatus, comprising: a semiconductor substrate; a semiconductor optical device integrally formed on the substrate, which semiconductor optical device defines a device optical propagation direction and has an etched device end face that is non-normal with respect to the device optical propagation direction; and a low-index planar optical waveguide integrally formed on the semiconductor substrate at the etched device end face, which optical waveguide defines a waveguide optical propagation direction and is end-coupled at its proximal end to the optical device through the etched device end face, the optical device and the integrally-formed waveguide being arranged so that the respective optical propagation directions are non-collinear and refraction at the device end-face end-couples optical signals propagating in the optical device and the optical waveguide along the respective optical propagation directions, wherein: the semiconductor substrate, the semiconductor optical device, and the low-index planar optical waveguide together form a single monolithically integrated optical structure; the etched device end face includes an outwardly protruding portion extending along the substrate from a bottom portion of the device end face beneath a proximal portion of the integrally-formed end-coupled waveguide; and at least one layer of the end-coupled waveguide decreases in thickness toward the etched device end face, the outwardly protruding portion of the etched device end face and the decreasing layer thickness together yielding a desired layer surface profile for at least one layer of the integrally-formed end-coupled waveguide.