Patent ID: 7620277

Claim:
A method for aligning an optical fiber to a handle, comprising: providing an optical fiber pigtail having a polarization axis, a terminal end and a polished end; providing a handle having an optically flat surface and a groove adapted to receive and retain said optical fiber; disposing the polished end of said optical fiber in the groove of the handle; providing a surrogate chip having a polarization maintaining waveguide propagating light of predetermined polarization; removably mounting said handle and said surrogate chip on a mount, having a vacuum chuck and a precision fiber rotator, adapted to position said handle and said surrogate chip in parallel planar alignment and with said optical fiber and said waveguide in register; rotating said optical fiber disposed in said groove with respect to said wave guide to align its polarization axis to a desired orientation with respect to the optically flat surface of said handle; and affixing said aligned optical fiber in said groove of said handle.