Patent ID: 7873246

Claim:
A co-packaged optical switch and optical spectrometer for switching and monitoring one or more optical signals, the signals comprising one or more optical wavelengths, each optical wavelength constituting a work piece, said optical switch and optical spectrometer further comprising: one or more input fiber ports, each said input fiber port serving as an external interface for introducing one or more input optical signals into said optical switch; one output fiber port, said output fiber port serving as an external interface for extracting the output optical signal from said optical switch; one or more shared optical elements, wherein each said optical element focuses the one or more optical signals of said one or more input fiber ports and the optical signal of said one output fiber port; at least one shared wavelength dispersive element for spatially separating at least one first wavelength of one of the one or more input optical signals from at least one other wavelength of the input optical signal and for recombining at least one first wavelength of a selected input optical signal of the one or more input optical signals with at least one other wavelength of the one or more input optical signals to form the output optical signal; an array of switching elements, at least one switching element for receiving one wavelength from each of said one or more input fiber ports and for switching one selected wavelength from one of said one or more input fiber ports to said one output fiber port according to a position of said at least one switching element; a tap for coupling a portion of said one output fiber port optical signal to at least one input monitoring port; at least one moveable reflective element for translating laterally across a selected band of the optical spectrum of said portion of said one output fiber port optical signal as projected by said wavelength dispersive element, and for reflecting a narrow band of said selected band of the optical spectrum to an output monitoring fiber port according to a position of said moveable reflective element; at least one beam steering element configured to position each wavelength from each of said one or more input fiber ports onto a designated switching element of said array of switching elements, to position at least one selected wavelength from said switching element to said output fiber port, and to position the optical spectrum of said portion of said one output fiber port optical signal projected by said wavelength dispersive element onto said at least one moveable reflective element; and, an optical measurement device for receiving said narrow band of said selected band of the optical spectrum from said output monitoring fiber port and for measuring an optical power of said narrow band of said selected band of the optical spectrum.