Patent ID: 6909826

Claim:
An optical monitor for redirecting a portion of an incoming optical signal into a detecting device, the monitor comprising a plurality of N input optical waveguides, each capable of receiving as an input said incoming optical signal for propagating along a defined optical axis; a plurality of N blazed Bragg gratings, each formed within a separate one of the plurality of N input optical waveguides and defined as comprising a grating period Λ i and blaze angle θ i so as to redirect a predetermined range of optical wavelengths out of the optical axis; an optical detecting arrangement disposed to receive the redirected optical wavelengths and monitor predetermined characteristics of said input optical signal; and a 1×N optical switch including a single input port for receiving the incoming optical signal and a plurality of N output ports, each output port coupled to a separate one of the plurality of N optical waveguides, wherein the switching between output ports is controlled to determine which grating of the plurality of N blazed Bragg gratings will be used with the incoming optical signal.