Fiber Optics: Integrated Optics

Adrian O'Donnell and Paul Suchoski, JDS-Uniphase Corp.

Integrated optics products that are finding widespread commercial application include lithium niobate modulators and passive waveguide devices using silica on silicon, ion-exchanged glass, or polymer on silicon material systems. Overall trends will be toward higher levels of integration and more functionality on a single chip. In addition, significant advances will be made to decrease component size and cost, enabling new market opportunities for this technology.

Since 1995, lithium niobate modulators have found widespread application in high-end cable television and OC-48 communications systems. More than 100,000 components have been fielded to date with FIT rates (failures in 10⁹ s) of less than 50.