Patent ID: 7274510

Claim:
An optical device comprising: a first imaging element to receive an input optical signal from an input waveguide or provide an output optical signal to an output waveguide; a beam displacer/combiner optically coupled to the first imaging element to split the input optical signal into a plurality of polarization component beams or to combine a plurality of polarization component beams into the output optical signal; a first half-wave plate optically coupled to the beam displacer/combiner to rotate a polarization orientation of the polarization component beams; a first nonreciprocal polarization rotator optically coupled to the first half-wave plate to rotate the polarization orientation of the polarization component beams; a first beam angle turner optically coupled to the first nonreciprocal polarization rotator to turn the polarization component beams through an angle, wherein a path of the polarization component beams converge to or diverge from the longitudinal axis of the optical device depending upon the propagation direction of the polarization component beams; a second beam angle turner optically coupled to the first beam angle turner to turn the polarization component beams through an angle, wherein the path of the polarization component beams converge to or diverge from a longitudinal axis of the optical device depending upon the propagation direction of the polarization component beams; a second half-wave plate optically coupled to the second beam angle turner to rotate the polarization orientation of the polarization component beams; a second nonreciprocal polarization rotator optically coupled to the second half-wave plate to rotate the polarization orientation of the polarization component beams; a prism optically coupled to the second half-wave plate to turn the polarization component beams through an angle toward the longitudinal axis; and a second imaging element optically coupled to the prism to couple the polarization component beams into respective inputs of a polarization dependent component or couple output polarization component beams from the polarization dependent component into the optical device.