OPTICAL ATTENUATOR USING ISOLATOR AND OPTICAL COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM INCLUDING THE SAME

Abstract: An optical attenuator using an isolator (200), and an optical communications system including the same, are provided. The optical attenuator controls the intensity of an input optical signal and includes an isolator (200) including a Faraday rotator in which a polyrization rotation angle varies depending on the intensitiy of an applied magnetic field, for changing the level of isolation of an optical signal according to the polarization rotation angle and outputting an attenuated optical signal, a magnetic field generator (206) for generating a mangetic field whose intensity is controlled by the intensity of current, and applying the generated magnetic field to the isolator, and a power supply for supplying current to the magnetic field generator and controlling the intensity of the current. Accordingly, a magnetic core (204) and a coil (206) are installed on the optical isolator (200), currents to be applied to the coil are controlled to adjust the intensity of a magnetic field which is formed on the isolator, and accordingly isolation of an optical signal is controlled. In this way, the optical signal is attenuated. Therefore, the optical attenuator is easily mounted on the system because of its small size, and can change the level of attenuation by controlling only the intensity of current.

Description: OPTICAL ATTENUATOR USING ISOLATOR AND OPTICAL COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM INCLUDING THE SAME Technical Field The present invention relates to an optical attenuator using an isolator and an optical communications system including the same, and more particularly, to an optical attenuator for attenuating an optical beam by giving a magnetic field change to an isolator, and an optical communications system including the same. Background Art In optical communications, an optical attenuator is widely applied. The optical attenuator is an important element in various optical components. In particular, when a signal entering via a receiving port during optical transmission is so strong as to go beyond the sensitivity of a detector, the intensity of a signal light can be controlled in accordance with a reception sensing range by including an attenuator. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a conventional optical attenuator. Referring to FIG. 1 , the optical attenuator is comprised of a first optical fiber 100, a first lens 102, an attenuation plate 104, a second lens 106, and a second optical fiber 108. First, an input signal light dispersed from the first optical fiber 100 is rendered into parallel light beams via the first lens 102 and incident upon the attenuation plate 104. The attenuation plate 104 is coated at different attenuation levels depending on its position, and has different attenuation levels according to the angle of rotation. The light signal passed through the attenuation plate 104 is focused by the second lens 106 and output to the second optical fiber 108. However, a special motor for rotating the attenuation plate 104 is required to automatically control the attenuation plate 104. In this case, the attenuator becomes large, and its cost increases. Particularly, when the attenuator must be mounted on a system such as an exchanger, direct mounting on a rack is difficult because of the size of the attenuator, which requires a special mounting device. Disclosure of the Invention To solve the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide an optical attenuator using an isolator, which can electromagnetically control the attenuation level of the attenuator by controlling the isolation level depending on the intensity of a magnetic field by applying the magnetic field to the isolator, and an optical communications system including the same. Accordingly, to achieve the above object, there is provided an optical attenuator using an isolator, which controls the intensity of an input optical signal, the optical attenuator comprising: an isolator including a Faraday rotator in which a polarization rotation angle varies depending on the intensity of an applied magnetic field, for changing the level of isolation of an optical signal according to the polarization rotation angle and outputting an attenuated optical signal; a magnetic field generator for generating a magnetic field whose intensity is controlled by the intensity of current, and applying the generated magnetic field to the isolator; and a power supply for supplying current to the magnetic field generator and controlling the intensity of the current. To achieve the above object, there is provided an optical communications system which includes an optical transmitter, first and second optical attenuators, and an optical receiver, and prevents damage to the optical receiver by controlling the power of an output optical signal of the optical transmitter using the first optical attenuator and the power of an optical signal to be received by the optical receiver using the second optical attenuator, wherein the first or second optical attenuator comprises: an isolator including a Faraday rotator in which a polarization rotation angle varies depending on the intensity of an applied magnetic field, for changing the level of isolation of an optical signal according to the polarization rotation angle and outputting an attenuated optical signal; a magnetic field generator for generating a magnetic field whose intensity is controlled by the intensity of current, and applying the generated magnetic field to the isolator; and a power supply for supplying a current to the magnetic field generator and controlling the intensity of the current. Brief Description of the Drawings FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a conventional optical attenuator; FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an optical attenuator using an isolator according to the present invention; FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the isolator of FIG. 2; and FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an optical communications system including an optical attenuator using an isolator according to the present invention. Best mode for carrying out the Invention Referring to FIG. 2, an optical attenuator includes an electromagnet which can form a magnetic field using a magnetic core 204 and a coil 206, on an isolator 200. A power supply 202 is connected to and supplies current to the coil 206. The magnetic core 204 functions to increase a magnetic flux caused by the coil 206. The operation of the present invention will now be described based on the above-described configuration. First, an input optical signal enters via an optical fiber input end (not shown), and is blocked by the isolator 200. An electrical signal generated by a power supply 202 controls the isolation level of the isolator 200 by changing the magnetic field of the coil 206. The isolation level can be considered to be the attenuation of an output optical signal with respect of an input optical signal. That is, while the electrical signal generated by the power supply 202 is applied to the magnetic core 204 and the coil 206, an input optical signal incident upon the isolator 200 is attenuated according to the level of attenuation of the isolator. In the optical attenuator operating as described above, an extinction ratio can be between 0.5dB and 50dB. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the isolator 200 of FIG. 2. The isolator allows light to be transmitted from an input projection port to an output port with low loss, and prevents reverse traveling and recombination of light with high loss, to thus stably maintain the operation of the system. For example, while a light source emitted by a laser diode travels in a light transmission direction, a reflected light is generated in a connecter where optical fibers are spliced to each other, or where a reflective noise is generated due to light traveling backward when connected to various other devices. The isolator prevents the above problems, and is necessary particularly in optical communications of no less than 1Gbps speed and a high sensitivity sensor where problems are generated by a reflected light. The isolator of FIG. 3 includes a first collimator 300, a first double refraction element 302, a Faraday rotator 304, a second double refraction element 306, and a second collimator 308. Rutile or calcite is suitable as the materials of the first and second double refraction elements. The first double refraction element 302 operates as a polarizer, and the second double refraction element 306 operates as an analyzer. The principle is that only a particular polarized light of one direction passes and polarized light vertical to the above polarized light does not pass. The essential parameter between the polarizer and the analyzer is the extinction ratio of the passing polarized light to the polarized light that is vertical to the passing polarized light. The Faraday rotator 304 rotates the polarization plane of incident light by 45°. The light rotated 45° is reflected in a reverse direction by the rear end of the Faraday rotator 304 and reenters it, and then is rotated 45° again. Thus, the light is rotated at a total of 90°. Accordingly, the reflected wave rotated 90° is blocked by the polarizer. The Faraday rotator 304 generates a Faraday rotation by a Faraday effect when a magnetic field is applied to the magneto-optic material in a traveling direction. The Faraday effect is that the polarization plane of light rotates while the light passes through a magneto-optic material. The performance of the isolator is determined by forward insertion loss and backward isolation. The isolator usually has insertion loss of about 1dB and isolation of about 30dB due to reflection at an element junction, and a defective polarizer and a defective rotator. The operation of the isolator of FIG. 3 will now be described. The first collimator 300 collects and collimates light emitted by a first optical fiber or a laser diode (not shown). The collimated light is divided into two beams whose polarized directions are perpendicular to each other by the first double refraction element 302, and the two beams pass through different paths, and are incident upon the Faraday rotator 304. Rutile or calcite is suitable for the materials of the double refraction elements. The light entering the Faraday rotator 304 is rotated 45° in an existing polarized light directions while polarized directions are kept perpendicular to each other. While the polarization direction-changed beams again pass through the second double refraction element 306, the two beams are united into one. Then, the two beams are collimated by the second collimator 308, and the collimated beam enters a second optical fiber (not shown). Here, the Faraday rotator 304 allows the isolator to maintain a constant magnetic field so that polarization can be changed by 45°. However, if a magnetic field is generated in the vicinity of the isolator, the magnetic field of a magnet comprising the Faraday rotator is affected. Also, the Faraday rotator changes the rotation angle of polarization according to the intensity of the magnetic field as represented by the following Equation 1 : Θ=VBI ...(1) wherein θ is a rotation angle, V is a constant, B is the intensity of a magnetic field, and I is an interaction length. When polarization is changed by an external magnetic field as represented in Equation 1 , the paths of light beams polarized perpendicular to each other by the second double refraction element 306 are changed, which consequently changes the amount of light incident upon the second optical fiber via the second collimator 308. That is, the intensity of the magnetic field varies with the intensity of an external electric signal (current), and the loss characteristics of the isolator differs depending on the variation of the magnetic field intensity. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an optical communications system including an optical attenuator using an isolator according to the present invention. Referring to FIG. 4, the optical communications system includes an optical transmitter 400, a first optical attenuator 402 using an isolator, a second optical attenuator 404 using an isolator, and an optical receiver 406. The power of an optical signal incident upon the optical transmitter 400 is adjusted by the first optical attenuator 402 using isolator to supply output power which is required by the system. A strong optical signal is transmitted to the second optical attenuator 404 using isolator via a transmission channel, and attenuated by the optical attenuator 404, to prevent damage to the optical receiver 406. As to transmission of a wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) optical signal, the optical attenuator using an isolator controls the power of light when adding or dropping of a channel is conducted in an optical transmitter and receiver and an optical add/drop multiplexer. Industrial Applicability According to the present invention, a magnetic core and a coil are installed on an optical isolator, currents to be applied to the coil are controlled to adjust the intensity of a magnetic field which is formed on the isolator, and accordingly the isolation of an optical signal is controlled. In this way, the optical signal is attenuated. Therefore, an optical attenuator can be accomplished which is easily mounted on a system by virtue of its small size and is not sensitive to external factors such as dust, temperature, and humid since the level of attenuation can be changed by controlling only the intensity of current. Also, the interface of the optical attenuator with the system is easily performed since currents are electrically controlled rather than mechanically controlled using a motor to rotate an optical attenuator plate.

Claims: What is claimed is: 1. An optical attenuator using an isolator, which controls the intensity of an input optical signal, the optical attenuator comprising: an isolator including a Faraday rotator in which a polarization rotation angle varies depending on the intensity of an applied magnetic field, for changing the level of isolation of an optical signal according to the polarization rotation angle and outputting an attenuated optical signal; a magnetic field generator for generating a magnetic field whose intensity is controlled by the intensity of current, and applying the generated magnetic field to the isolator; and a power supply for supplying current to the magnetic field generator and controlling the intensity of the current. 2. The optical attenuator using an isolator as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the magnetic field generator comprises: a coil; and a magnetic core installed inside the coil, for increasing a magnetic flux. 0 3. An optical communications system including an optical transmitter, first and second optical attenuators, and an optical receiver, for preventing damage to the optical receiver by controlling the power of an output optical signal of the optical transmitter using the first optical attenuator and the power of an optical signal to be received by the optical receiver 5 using the second optical attenuator, wherein the first or second optical attenuator comprises: an isolator including a Faraday rotator in which a polarization rotation angle varies depending on the intensity of an applied magnetic field, for changing the level of isolation of an optical signal according to the o polarization rotation angle and outputting an attenuated optical signal; a magnetic field generator for generating a magnetic field whose intensity is controlled by the intensity of current, and applying the generated magnetic field to the isolator; and a power supply for supplying a current to the magnetic field generator and controlling the intensity of the current.

Inventors: HWANG SEONG-TAEK, KIM JEONG-MEE, KIM SUNG-JUN, YOON SOO-YOUNG, HWANG, SEONG-TAEK, KIM, JEONG-MEE, KIM, SUNG-JUN, YOON, SOO-YOUNG
Applicants: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO LTD, SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
Application year: 1998
Main classification: G02F1
IPC codes: G02B5, G02B27, G02F1, H04B10