Semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system and test method thereof

Abstract

The invention discloses a semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system and a test method thereof, which belong to the field of laser communication and eliminate errors caused by system loss to optical power measurement through optical power calibration compensation coefficients. The variable-temperature adjustment is controllable, the wavelength of the laser is efficiently tuned, and various indexes are measured. The device mainly comprises a plurality of drivers and a high-low temperature test box, to-be-tested laser parts of a plurality of tested lasers are placed in the high-low temperature test box, and other parts of the tested lasers are located outside the high-low temperature test box so as to avoid the influence of equipment temperature drift on measurement; the plurality of drivers are respectively and correspondingly connected with the plurality of tested lasers, optical chip driving current and TEC closed-loop temperature control are provided for the tested lasers, wavelength tuning of the lasers is realized through the TEC closed-loop temperature control system, and temperature sensors are arranged at the tested lasers in the high and low temperature test box. The invention is mainly used for the semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of laser communication, in particular, especially relates to a semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system and a test method thereof. BACKGROUND

[0002] Semiconductor narrow linewidth lasers have a wide range of applications in optical communication, precision measurement, and quantum information processing due to their high monochromaticity and stability. However, to meet the needs of different application scenarios, the wavelength of these lasers must be precisely tuned, and their performance must be stable under various environmental conditions, especially temperature changes.

[0003] Currently, the wavelength tuning and temperature cycle test of semiconductor narrow linewidth lasers mainly relies on manual operation. The technician needs to manually adjust the environmental temperature of the high-low temperature test chamber and measure and record each index of the laser, including but not limited to output power, center wavelength, linewidth, and other parameters. In addition, when tuning the wavelength of the laser for specific application requirements, it also needs to be adjusted and verified manually. This method is not only inefficient, but also due to human factors, the consistency and accuracy of the test results are difficult to guarantee.

[0004] More importantly, the existing test method lacks systematicness and standardized process, does not fully consider the complexity of the influence of temperature change on the performance of the laser, and does not establish an effective compensation mechanism to correct the optical power change caused by temperature fluctuation. The lack of optical power calibration compensation coefficient for measurement makes the test results of different batches or different devices not comparable, limiting the space for product performance optimization and technological progress. SUMMARY

[0005] The purpose of the present application is to provide a semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system and a test method thereof, which eliminates the error introduced by system loss in optical power measurement through the optical power calibration compensation coefficient; the temperature adjustment is controllable, and the wavelength of the laser is efficiently tuned and each index is measured.

[0006] The present application is realized by the following technical solutions:

[0007] The semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system comprises a plurality of drivers and a high-low temperature test box, the high-low temperature test box internally accommodates a to-be-tested laser part of a to-be-tested laser, and the remaining parts of the to-be-tested laser are located outside the high-low temperature test box to avoid the influence of equipment temperature drift on measurement; the plurality of drivers are respectively connected to the plurality of to-be-tested lasers to provide light chip driving current and TEC closed-loop temperature control for the to-be-tested lasers, and wavelength tuning of the lasers is realized through a TEC closed-loop temperature control system, a temperature sensor is arranged at each to-be-tested laser in the high-low temperature test box to collect real-time temperature of an environment in which the to-be-tested laser is located, the plurality of to-be-tested lasers are connected to an optical switch through optical fibers, the optical switch is connected to a fiber coupler through the optical fibers, the fiber coupler is connected to a test device through the optical fibers, the plurality of drivers are connected to a program-controlled power supply, and the program-controlled power supply, the drivers, the temperature sensor, the optical switch and the test device are all connected to a computer.

[0008] Further, the optical switch is controlled by the computer, and single selection is performed in the multiple to-be-tested laser output lights to realize polling measurement of the multiple to-be-tested lasers.

[0009] Further, the program-controlled power supply has current limiting and voltage limiting functions, independently supplies power to each driver, and independently monitors voltage and current, the computer controls the program-controlled power supply to supply power or cut off power to the lasers according to test requirements, and timely cuts off the power supply in an abnormal power supply state such as overcurrent or overvoltage.

[0010] Further, the fiber coupler divides the single laser beam selected by the optical switch into multiple beams and synchronously inputs the multiple beams into different measurement devices to realize simultaneous measurement of multiple indicators of the lasers.

[0011] Further, the test device includes but is not limited to an optical wavelength meter and an optical power meter, and both have computer remote control and data acquisition functions.

[0012] Further, the computer synchronously stores the collected data in a cloud storage in real time and monitors and intervenes through remote instructions to realize full-automatic measurement without on-site attendance.

[0013] A test method of a semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system, comprising the following steps:

[0014] S1, a to-be-tested laser is connected to the high-low temperature test box, a power calibration compensation coefficient Pcal(n) of the to-be-tested laser is calculated, and the coefficient is recorded;

[0015] S2, the program-controlled power supply is controlled, all to-be-tested lasers are turned off, the high-low temperature test box is started to control the temperature to a specified value, and 5 minutes are waited after the temperature is stabilized;

[0016] S3, control the program-controlled power supply, restart the measured laser to the tuning midpoint, poll the output wavelength until stable, record the index value Prcd(n), for the measured laser that does not reach the lower limit of tuning, gradually tune down and repeat the recording process until all the measured lasers reach the lower limit of tuning;

[0017] S4, calculate the actual output optical power Prel(n) of the measured laser, Prel(n) = Prcd(n) + Pcal(n) (n is a positive integer), and record;

[0018] S5, control the program-controlled power supply, restart the measured laser to the tuning midpoint, poll the output wavelength until stable, record the index value Prcd(n), for the measured laser that does not reach the upper limit of tuning, gradually tune up and repeat the recording process until all the measured lasers reach the upper limit of tuning;

[0019] S6, according to step S4, calculate the actual output optical power Prel(n) at this time;

[0020] S7, control the high-low temperature test chamber, according to the minimum step, lower the internal temperature of the high-low temperature test chamber by one step; repeat steps S2-S6 until the test of the lowest test temperature is completed;

[0021] S8, control the high-low temperature test chamber, according to the minimum step, increase the internal temperature of the high-low temperature test chamber by one step; repeat steps S2-S6 until the test of the highest test temperature is completed;

[0022] S9, control the program-controlled power supply, turn off all the measured lasers, and set the temperature of the high-low temperature test chamber to 20°C; after the high-low temperature test chamber cools down, open the box and take out all the measured lasers, and the test is completed.

[0023] Further, step S1 specifically includes the following steps:

[0024] 1) Install the measured laser in the installation position inside the high-low temperature test chamber, and then do not connect the optical fiber to the optical switch;

[0025] 2) Start the program-controlled power supply to supply power to the laser through the driver to start;

[0026] 3) Wait for 2 minutes, and after the laser output is stable, measure and record the direct output optical power Pout(1)~Pout(n) of the laser one by one (n is a positive integer);

[0027] 4) Connect the laser to the optical switch one by one;

[0028] 5) Control the optical switch to select one by one, synchronously collect the measured values of the optical power meter in the system, and record the powers Pget(1)~Pget(n) (n is a positive integer) measured by the power meter after each laser passes through the measuring system.

[0029] Further, step S3 specifically comprises repeatedly polling and collecting the output wavelength of each measured laser, and when the output wavelength of any measured laser is stable, the index value Prcd(n) of the measured laser is recorded; if the measured laser has reached the lower limit of tuning, the operation is stopped and waiting, and if the measured laser has not reached the lower limit of tuning, the measured laser is tuned down by one step unit, and the waiting is continued.

[0030] Further, step S5 specifically comprises repeatedly polling and collecting the output wavelength of each measured laser, and when the output wavelength of any measured laser is stable, the index value Prcd(n) of the measured laser is recorded; if the measured laser has reached the upper limit of tuning, the operation is stopped and waiting, and if the measured laser has not reached the upper limit of tuning, the measured laser is tuned down by one step unit, and the waiting is continued.

[0031] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present application are:

[0032] 1. The optical power calibration compensation coefficient is designed to eliminate the error introduced by the system loss on the optical power measurement.

[0033] 2. The temperature change process of the high-low temperature test box and the start-up and stabilization process of the multiple lasers are synchronous and parallel, and relative to the artificial serial test, the waiting time is significantly compressed.

[0034] 3. The tuning test process is asynchronous and parallel, the time slices of the multiple laser tuning test are shared, relative to the artificial serial test, the waiting time is significantly compressed, and the multiple tests are independent of each other and do not affect each other.

[0035] 4. Multiple parameter test devices can be measured at the same time, the measurement index is comprehensive, and the devices do not need to wait for each other, the idle time of the devices is reduced, and the utilization rate of the devices is greatly improved.

[0036] 5. Increasing the number of single batch test lasers and test indexes will not increase the measurement time, significantly improving the production test capacity, and the scale effect is obvious.

[0037] 6. The measurement control is automatically executed, the process is unattended, and remote monitoring and intervention are possible, which significantly saves test manpower; automatic data processing and cloud storage facilitate access to the information management system, expand more functions, and further improve the automation efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0038] Figure 1 is the structural principle diagram of the semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] The application will be further described with reference to the drawings.

[0040] As Figure 1 shown, the embodiment 1, a semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system, comprises a plurality of drivers and a high-low temperature test box, the high-low temperature test box internally accommodates a plurality of to-be-tested laser parts of measured lasers, increasing the number of single-batch test lasers and test indicators will not increase the measurement time, significantly improving the production test capacity, and the scale effect is obvious, the remaining parts of the measured lasers are located outside the high-low temperature test box to avoid the influence of equipment temperature drift on measurement; a plurality of drivers are respectively connected to a plurality of measured lasers, providing light chip driving current and TEC closed-loop temperature control for the measured lasers, and realizing wavelength tuning of the lasers through the TEC closed-loop temperature control system, a temperature sensor is arranged at each of the measured lasers in the high-low temperature test box to collect real-time temperature of the environment where the measured lasers are located, a plurality of measured lasers are connected to an optical switch through an optical fiber, the optical switch is connected to a fiber coupler through an optical fiber, the fiber coupler is connected to a test device through an optical fiber, a plurality of drivers are connected to a program-controlled power supply, and the program-controlled power supply, the driver, the temperature sensor, the optical switch and the test device are all connected to a computer. The temperature change process of the high-low temperature test box and the start-up stabilization process of the multiple lasers are synchronous and parallel, which significantly compresses the waiting time compared with artificial serial testing.

[0041] Embodiment 2, a semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system, the optical switch is controlled by a computer, and a single selection is performed in the output light of a plurality of measured lasers to realize polling measurement of the plurality of measured lasers; the program-controlled power supply has current limiting and voltage limiting functions, independently supplies power to each driver, and independently monitors the voltage and current, the computer controls the program-controlled power supply to power on or off according to the test requirements, and timely cuts off the power supply in abnormal power supply state such as overcurrent and overvoltage; the fiber coupler divides the single laser beam selected by the optical switch into multiple beams and synchronously inputs different measurement devices to realize simultaneous measurement of multiple indicators of the laser; the test device includes but is not limited to an optical wavelength meter and an optical power meter, and both have computer remote control and data acquisition functions, multiple parameter test devices can be measured at the same time, the measurement indicators are comprehensive, and the devices do not need to wait for each other, reducing the idle time of the devices and greatly improving the utilization rate of the devices; the computer synchronously stores the collected data to the cloud storage in real time, and monitors and intervenes through remote instructions to realize on-site unattended full-automatic measurement, and the other parts are the same as in embodiment 1.

[0042] The measured laser is a semiconductor narrow linewidth laser.

[0043] Embodiment 3, a test method of a semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system, using the semiconductor narrow linewidth laser temperature cycle test system of any one of Embodiments 1-2, comprising the following steps:

[0044] S1, connecting the measured laser to be measured in the high-low temperature test box, calculating the power calibration compensation coefficient Pcal(n) of the measured laser, and recording;

[0045] S2, controlling the program-controlled power supply, turning off all the measured lasers, starting the high-low temperature test box to control the temperature to a specified value, and waiting for 5 minutes after the temperature is stable;

[0046] S3, controlling the program-controlled power supply, restarting the measured laser to the tuning midpoint, polling and collecting the output wavelength until it is stable, recording the index value Prcd(n), and for the measured laser that does not reach the lower limit of tuning, gradually tuning down and repeating the recording process until all the measured lasers reach the lower limit of tuning;

[0047] S4, calculating the actual output optical power Prel(n) of the measured laser, Prel(n) = Prcd(n) + Pcal(n) (n is a positive integer), and recording;

[0048] S5, controlling the program-controlled power supply, restarting the measured laser to the tuning midpoint, polling and collecting the output wavelength until it is stable, recording the index value Prcd(n), and for the measured laser that does not reach the upper limit of tuning, gradually tuning up and repeating the recording process until all the measured lasers reach the upper limit of tuning;

[0049] S6, calculating the actual output optical power Prel(n) at this time according to step S4;

[0050] S7, controlling the high-low temperature test box, according to the minimum step, lowering the internal temperature of the high-low temperature test box by one step; repeating steps S2-S6 until the test at the lowest test temperature is completed;

[0051] S8, controlling the high-low temperature test box, according to the minimum step, increasing the internal temperature of the high-low temperature test box by one step; repeating steps S2-S6 until the test at the highest test temperature is completed;

[0052] S9, controlling the program-controlled power supply, turning off all the measured lasers, and setting the temperature of the high-low temperature test box to 20℃; after the high-low temperature test box cools down, taking out all the measured lasers, and the test is completed; the tuning test process is asynchronous and parallel, multiple laser tuning test time slices are shared, relative to artificial serial test, the waiting time is significantly compressed, and multiple tests are independent of each other and do not affect each other;

[0053] S10, recording data, drawing and uploading to the cloud;

[0054] Step S1 specifically comprises the following steps:

[0055] 1) Install the measured laser inside the high-low temperature test box at the installation position, and then connect the optical fiber without connecting the optical switch;

[0056] 2) Start the program-controlled power supply to supply power to the laser through the driver to start;

[0057] 3) Wait for 2 minutes, and then measure and record the direct output optical power Pout(1)~Pout(n) of the laser (n is a positive integer) one by one after the laser output is stable;

[0058] 4) Connect the lasers to the optical switch one by one;

[0059] 5) Control the optical switch to select one by one, and simultaneously collect the measurement value of the optical power meter in the system, and record the power Pget(1)~Pget(n) measured by the power meter after each laser passes through the measurement system (n is a positive integer);

[0060] Step S3 specifically comprises repeatedly polling and collecting the output wavelength of each measured laser, and when the output wavelength of any measured laser is stable, the index value Prcd(n) of the measured laser is recorded; if the measured laser has reached the lower limit of tuning, the operation is stopped and waiting, if it has not reached the lower limit of tuning, the measured laser is tuned down by one step unit, and the waiting continues;

[0061] Step S5 specifically comprises repeatedly polling and collecting the output wavelength of each measured laser, and when the output wavelength of any measured laser is stable, the index value Prcd(n) of the measured laser is recorded; if the measured laser has reached the upper limit of tuning, the operation is stopped and waiting, if it has not reached the upper limit of tuning, the measured laser is tuned down by one step unit, and the waiting continues.

Claims

1. A temperature cycling test system for a semiconductor narrow linewidth laser, characterized in that: The system includes several drivers and a high and low temperature test chamber. The test chamber houses the laser components of several lasers under test, while the remaining components of the lasers under test are located outside the chamber to avoid temperature drift affecting the measurements. The drivers are connected to the lasers under test, providing them with optical chip drive current and TEC closed-loop temperature control. The wavelength tuning of the lasers is achieved through the TEC closed-loop temperature control system. Each laser under test in the high and low temperature test chamber is equipped with a temperature sensor. The lasers under test are connected to an optical switch via optical fiber, the optical switch is connected to an optical coupler via optical fiber, and the optical coupler is connected to the test equipment via optical fiber. The drivers are connected to a programmable power supply, and the programmable power supply, drivers, temperature sensors, optical switches, and test equipment are all connected to a computer.

2. The temperature cycling test system for semiconductor narrow linewidth lasers according to claim 1, characterized in that: The optical switch is computer-controlled and performs single-channel selection in the output light of multiple lasers under test to achieve polling measurement of multiple lasers under test.

3. The temperature cycling test system for semiconductor narrow linewidth lasers according to claim 1, characterized in that: The programmable power supply has current limiting and voltage limiting functions, provides independent power to each driver, and independently monitors voltage and current. The computer will control the programmable power supply to power on or off the laser according to the test requirements, and promptly cut off the power supply when overcurrent or overvoltage occurs.

4. The temperature cycling test system for semiconductor narrow linewidth lasers according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fiber optic coupler splits the single laser beam selected by the optical switch into multiple beams, which are simultaneously input into different measuring devices, enabling simultaneous measurement of multiple laser parameters.

5. The temperature cycling test system for semiconductor narrow linewidth lasers according to claim 1, characterized in that: The testing equipment includes an optical wavelength meter and an optical power meter, both of which are equipped with remote computer control and data acquisition capabilities.

6. The temperature cycling test system for semiconductor narrow linewidth lasers according to claim 1, characterized in that: The computer synchronizes the collected data to the cloud storage in real time and monitors and intervenes through remote commands, realizing fully automated measurement without on-site supervision.

7. A test method for a temperature cycling test system for a semiconductor narrow-linewidth laser, characterized in that: The semiconductor narrow-linewidth laser temperature cycling test system according to any one of claims 1-6 includes the following steps: S1. Connect the laser under test to the high and low temperature test chamber, calculate the power calibration compensation coefficient Pcal(n) of the laser under test, and record it. S2. Control the programmable power supply, turn off all lasers under test, start the high and low temperature test chamber to control the temperature to the specified value, and wait 5 minutes after the temperature stabilizes; S3. Control the programmable power supply, restart the laser under test to the tuning midpoint, poll and collect the output wavelength until it stabilizes, and record the index value Prcd(n). For the laser under test that has not reached the tuning lower limit, gradually tune it down and repeat the recording process until all the lasers under test reach the tuning lower limit. S4. Calculate the actual output optical power Pral(n) of the laser under test, Pral(n) = Prcd(n) + Pcal(n), and record it. S5. Control the programmable power supply, restart the laser under test to the tuning midpoint, poll and collect the output wavelength until it stabilizes, and record the index value Prcd(n). For the laser under test that has not reached the tuning upper limit, gradually tune upwards and repeat the recording process until all the lasers under test reach the tuning upper limit. S6. Calculate the actual output optical power Prel(n) at this time according to step S4; S7. Control the high and low temperature test chamber and reduce the internal temperature of the high and low temperature test chamber by one step in the smallest increment; repeat steps S2-S6 until the test at the lowest test temperature is completed. S8. Control the high and low temperature test chamber and increase the internal temperature of the high and low temperature test chamber by one step in the smallest increment; repeat steps S2-S6 until the test of the highest test temperature is completed. S9. Control the programmable power supply to turn off all the lasers under test, and set the temperature of the high and low temperature test chamber to 20℃; after the high and low temperature test chamber has cooled down, open the chamber and take out all the lasers under test. The test is now complete.

8. The test method of the temperature cycling test system for semiconductor narrow linewidth lasers according to claim 7, characterized in that: Step S1 specifically includes the following steps: 1) Install the laser under test in the installation position inside the high and low temperature test chamber, and after leading out the optical fiber, do not connect it to the optical switch at first; 2) Start the laser by powering it with the programmable power supply via the driver; 3) Wait 2 minutes until the laser output stabilizes, then measure and record the direct output power of the laser Pout(1) to Pout(n) one by one; 4) Connect the lasers to the optical switches one by one; 5) Control the optical switches to select one by one, synchronously collect the measured values ​​of the optical power meter in the system, and record the power Pget(1)~Pget(n) measured by the power meter after each laser passes through the measurement system.

9. The test method of the temperature cycling test system for semiconductor narrow linewidth lasers according to claim 7, characterized in that: Step S3 specifically includes repeatedly polling and collecting the output wavelength of each laser under test. When the output wavelength of any laser under test is stable, the index value Prcd(n) of the laser under test is recorded. If the laser under test has reached the lower limit of tuning, the operation is stopped and waited. If the lower limit of tuning has not yet been reached, the laser under test is tuned down by one step unit and continues to wait for stability.

10. The test method of the temperature cycling test system for semiconductor narrow linewidth lasers according to claim 7, characterized in that: Step S5 specifically includes repeatedly polling and collecting the output wavelength of each laser under test. When the output wavelength of any laser under test is stable, the index value Prcd(n) of the laser under test is recorded. If the laser under test has reached the tuning limit, the operation is stopped and waited. If the tuning limit has not yet been reached, the laser under test is tuned down by one step unit and continues to wait for stability.

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