Polymer waveguide assembly

Abstract

The polymer waveguide assembly comprises a waveguide plate and two coupling structures located at the two ends of the waveguide plate, the two ends of a waveguide channel on the waveguide plate extend out to form cantilevers, the waveguide plate is connected with the coupling structures through the cantilevers, coupling grooves are formed in the coupling structures, and the two sides of the cantilevers are limited by the two side wall bodies of the coupling grooves; v-shaped grooves distributed in an array are formed in the bottom of the front end of the coupling groove, and adapter optical fibers are positioned and assembled in the V-shaped grooves; a positioning plane for bearing the cantilever is arranged at the bottom of the rear end of the coupling groove, the front end face of the cantilever located on the positioning plane is connected with the tail end face of the switching optical fiber, and the center line of a core layer of the cantilever coincides with the center line of the switching optical fiber in the corresponding V-shaped groove. According to the polymer waveguide assembly, standardization of the coupling end face is achieved through coupling of the waveguide plate and the switching optical fiber in the coupling structure, and then rapid end face butt joint with an adaptive optical fiber connector is achieved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to optical transmission structures, and in particular relates to a polymer waveguide component. Background Art

[0002] The polymer waveguide plate cannot be arranged in a V-groove positioning manner like conventional optical fibers, resulting in shortcomings such as poor alignment consistency between the FA optical fiber end face and the polymer waveguide end face during the coupling debugging process when the polymer waveguide is docked with the adapter optical fiber, and low debugging efficiency. In addition, when the polymer waveguide plate is coupled and docked with the adapter optical fiber, precise docking cannot be achieved through the alignment of the corresponding coupling structure. As a result, the docking efficiency of the polymer waveguide plate and the adapter optical fiber is low, and debugging is required for each docking of the two. Summary of the invention

[0003] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a polymer waveguide component with a new structure, which can convert the butt joint end face of the waveguide plate and the adapter optical fiber into the butt joint end face of the optical fiber and the adapter optical fiber through a coupling structure, so that the polymer waveguide component can achieve accurate and rapid docking with the adapter optical fiber connector through a guiding structure.

[0004] The purpose of the present invention and the technical problem to be solved are achieved by adopting the following technical solutions. According to a polymer waveguide component proposed by the present invention, it includes a waveguide plate 8 and two coupling structures 7 located at both ends of the waveguide plate 8, the two ends of the waveguide channel 5 on the waveguide plate 8 extend to form a cantilever 51, the waveguide plate 8 is connected to the coupling structure 7 through the cantilever 51, the coupling structure 7 has a coupling groove 711, and the two sides of the cantilever 51 are limited by the two side walls of the coupling groove 711; the front end bottom of the coupling groove 711 is provided with an array of V-grooves 712, and the V-grooves 712 are positioned and assembled with the switching optical fiber 9; the rear end bottom of the coupling groove 711 is provided with a positioning plane 713 for supporting the cantilever 51, the front end face of the cantilever 51 located on the positioning plane 713 is connected to the tail end face of the switching optical fiber 9, and the center line of its core layer 3 coincides with the center line of the switching optical fiber 9 in the corresponding V-groove 712.

[0005] The purpose of the present invention and the solution to its technical problems can be further achieved by adopting the following technical measures.

[0006] In the aforementioned polymer waveguide component, the coupling groove is also filled with optical path glue, and the cantilever 51 and the switching optical fiber 9 are fixedly positioned and coupled by the optical path glue.

[0007] In the aforementioned polymer waveguide component, the coupling structure 7 includes a base 71 and a cover plate 72 , wherein a coupling slot 711 is located on the base 71 , and the cover plate 72 is used to cover the coupling slot 711 .

[0008] In the aforementioned polymer waveguide assembly, the lower end of the cover plate 72 can enter the coupling slot 711 and press on the cantilever 51 and the switching optical fiber 9 .

[0009] In the aforementioned polymer waveguide assembly, the cover plate 72 is fixed in the coupling groove 711 by means of glue on its bottom and both side end surfaces.

[0010] In the aforementioned polymer waveguide assembly, a guiding structure for guiding the coupling structure 7 to dock with the adapting optical fiber connector is provided on the front end surface.

[0011] In the aforementioned polymer waveguide component, the coupling structure 7 is further provided with a fixing cavity 73 at the tail end, and the fixing cavity is used to fix the tail sheath or to contain glue for providing support and protection for the cantilever.

[0012] In the aforementioned polymer waveguide component, the waveguide plate 8 is further provided with a vertical deflection structure 6 at the waveguide channel 5 for realizing vertical light emission.

[0013] In the aforementioned polymer waveguide assembly, the substrate of the waveguide plate is made of a flexible film, the upper cladding is made of a flexible optical path adhesive, and the core layer and the lower cladding are both made of a hard material.

[0014] In the aforementioned polymer waveguide component, the vertical turning structure 6 is a 90° V-groove with a high reflection film layer evaporated on the surface, and the bottom of the 90° V-groove is close to the substrate side of the waveguide plate, while the groove opening is located on the upper cladding layer 4 side.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has obvious advantages and beneficial effects. By means of the above technical solution, the present invention can achieve considerable technical advancement and practicality, and has wide industrial utilization value, and has at least the following advantages:

[0016] The polymer waveguide assembly of the present invention realizes the standardization of the coupling end face through the coupling of the waveguide plate and the switching optical fiber in the coupling structure, thereby realizing the rapid end face connection with the matching optical fiber connector.

[0017] The polymer waveguide component of the present invention realizes coupling with the end face of the transfer optical fiber through the coupling structure at the end of its waveguide channel, so that the waveguide end face of the waveguide plate is converted into the optical fiber end face, so that when the waveguide component is docked with the adapted optical fiber, the docking between the waveguide end face and the optical fiber end face is converted into the docking between the optical fiber end faces, and the end face docking of the optical fiber after the precise positioning of the positioning structure is a mature process in this field, and the docking between the transfer optical fiber and the adapter end optical fiber in the coupling structure of the present invention is achieved by the guiding positioning between the positioning structures where they are located, and the docking process is the plugging between the positioning structures (such as the guiding plugging between the guide pin and the guide pin hole between the coupling structure of the present application and the standard MT connector), without the need for connection through glue, and the separation after docking only needs to be achieved through the separation between the positioning structures, which can meet the needs of repeated plugging and unplugging, and there is no loss in the docked optical fiber end face during the plugging and unplugging process. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the composition of the polymer waveguide component of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the coupling structure of the polymer waveguide component of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a base of the coupling structure of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 4 for Figure 3 The main view;

[0022] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the waveguide plate structure of the polymer waveguide assembly of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the optical path of the vertical steering structure of the polymer waveguide assembly of the present invention;

[0024]

Main component symbol description

[0025] 1: Base

[0026] 2: Lower cladding

[0027] 3: Core layer

[0028] 4: Upper cladding

[0029] 5: Waveguide channel

[0030] 51: Cantilever

[0031] 6: Vertical steering structure

[0032] 7: Coupling structure

[0033] 71: Base

[0034] 711: Coupling slot

[0035] 712: V-groove

[0036] 713: Positioning plane

[0037] 714: Guide pin hole

[0038] 72: Cover

[0039] 73: Fixed cavity

[0040] 8: Waveguide

[0041] 9: Switching optical fiber DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0042] In order to further explain the technical means and effects adopted by the present invention to achieve the predetermined invention purpose, the specific implementation method, structure, characteristics and effects of the polymer waveguide component proposed in the present invention are described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and preferred embodiments.

[0043] See also Figure 1-6 , which is a schematic diagram of the structure of each part of the polymer waveguide component of the present invention, the polymer waveguide component includes a waveguide plate 8 and two coupling structures 7, the waveguide plate 8 has a waveguide channel 5, both ends of the waveguide channel 5 extend out of the waveguide plate 8 to form a cantilever 51, each cantilever 51 is located in a corresponding coupling structure 7, and is connected to the end face of the switching optical fiber 9 in the coupling structure 7, the switching optical fiber 9 is positioned and assembled in the coupling structure 7 and its front end face is flush with the front end face of the coupling structure 7, so that the waveguide plate 8 can be quickly connected with the adapter optical fiber connector through the switching optical fiber 9 in the coupling structure 7.

[0044] In this embodiment, a guiding structure is provided on the front end surface of the coupling structure 7 to achieve guidance when docking with the optical fiber connector at the adapter end. Preferably, the guiding structure is a guide pin or a guide pin hole.

[0045] In the embodiment of the present invention, the coupling structure 7 includes a base 71 and a cover plate 72, and the base 71 is provided with a coupling groove 711 extending along the extension direction of the waveguide channel 5, and the front and rear ends of the coupling groove 711 are open, wherein the waveguide channel 5 enters the coupling groove 711 from the rear end, and the switching optical fiber 9 is located inside the front end of the coupling groove 711.

[0046] The front end of the bottom of the coupling groove 711 has an array of V-grooves 712, which are used to realize the positioning of the switching optical fiber 9 in the positioning seat 71, and each V-groove 712 is provided with a switching optical fiber 9. The rear end of the bottom of the coupling groove 711 is also provided with a positioning plane 713, which is used to support the cantilever 51 at both ends of the waveguide channel 5. At the same time, the two sides of the cantilever 51 are limited by the two side walls of the coupling groove 711, and the center line of each core layer of the cantilever 51 supported and limited on the positioning plane 713 coincides with the center line of the switching optical fiber 9 in the corresponding V-groove 712, that is, in the coupling groove 711, the end face of the waveguide plate and the end face of the switching optical fiber 9 are automatically aligned, and no additional debugging is required. The end face connection of the waveguide plate and the switching optical fiber can be realized by directly filling the coupling groove 711 with optical path glue.

[0047] The cover plate 72 can be buckled on the base 71 and pressed on the transfer optical fiber and waveguide channel 5 in the coupling groove 711 of the base 71 to ensure the reliability of the end-to-end connection between the two. In the embodiment of the present invention, the cover plate 72 has a width substantially consistent with the coupling groove 711, and can enter the coupling groove 711 and fill the space after the coupling groove 711 is assembled with the optical fiber and the waveguide channel, that is, the cover plate 72 of the present invention has a certain thickness. And the cover plate 72 of the present invention is connected to the groove wall of the coupling groove 711 and the groove bottom waveguide plate and the optical fiber through glue.

[0048] In the embodiment of the present invention, after the waveguide plate and the switching optical fiber 9 are passively aligned end-to-end through the coupling groove 711, they are also initially fixed by filling the optical path glue in the coupling groove 711, and the cover plate 72 coated with glue on the bottom and side walls is buckled into the coupling groove 711 from top to bottom to cover the coupling groove 711. At this time, the bottom end surface of the cover plate 72 is pressed on the waveguide plate and the switching optical fiber 9 and bonded to them, and the side walls of the cover plate are bonded to the two side walls of the coupling groove 711.

[0049] In the embodiment of the present invention, the positioning plane 713 is lower than the bottom of the V-shaped groove 712 , so that the center of the waveguide core layer of the waveguide channel 5 can be aligned with the center of the transfer optical fiber 9 in the V-shaped groove 712 .

[0050] In the embodiment of the present invention, the tail of the coupling structure 7 is further provided with a fixing cavity 73 for fixing the tail sheath, and the radial dimension of the fixing cavity 73 is larger than the radial dimension of the coupling groove 711, so that the coupling structure 7 has a stepped hole structure with a small front and a large rear, and the stepped hole is a rectangular hole. Preferably, the fixing cavity 73 is also filled with glue for fixing the sheath.

[0051] In other embodiments of the present invention, the fixing cavity 73 directly protects and supports the waveguide plate through the glue therein, that is, in this case, the rear sheath is cancelled.

[0052] In the embodiment of the present invention, a guide pin hole 714 for matching with the guide pin on the optical fiber positioning structure at the adapter end is provided on the front end surface of the base 71 .

[0053] The arrangement of the coupling structure 7 of the present invention replaces the end face of the waveguide plate with the end face of the optical fiber, so that when the waveguide plate is docked with the adapter optical fiber, the waveguide plate and the adapter optical fiber can be quickly docked only through the cooperation of the coupling structure 7 and the adapter optical fiber connector (such as a standard MT connector). During the docking process, there is no need to align and debug the waveguide core layer and the optical fiber, and the waveguide plate and the optical fiber can be quickly docked only through the precise positioning of the coupling structure 7 and the adapter end optical fiber connector.

[0054] In the embodiment of the present invention, the waveguide plate 7 is further provided with a vertical deflection structure 6 for realizing vertical light emission at the waveguide channel 5. In this embodiment, the vertical deflection structure 6 is a 90° V-shaped groove. Both side walls of the 90° V-shaped groove have an inclination angle of 45 degrees with the surface of the waveguide plate.

[0055] In an embodiment of the present invention, the waveguide plate includes a substrate 1, a lower cladding layer 2 is provided on the upper surface of the substrate 1, a core layer 3 is provided on the upper surface of the lower cladding layer 2, an upper cladding layer 4 is formed above the core layer 3 and the lower cladding layer 2, and the upper cladding layer 4 can cover the outer surface of the core layer 3 except the lower end surface. The core layer 3 and the lower cladding layer 2 are both rigid structures made of hard materials, and the substrate 1 and the upper cladding layer 4 are flexible structures made of flexible materials, that is, the waveguide plate of the present invention is a sandwich structure with flexible structures on both sides and a hard structure in the middle, so that the waveguide plate has flexibility under the action of the flexible structures at the upper and lower surfaces, and can achieve transmission under a bending radius of 5mm, which can solve the problem that the hard waveguide adhesive is easy to bend and break. In addition, in the present invention, only the substrate and the upper cladding layer adopt flexible structures, while the core layer and the lower cladding layer can be hard structures made of conventional optical waveguide adhesive materials, without the need for complex and expensive flexible polymer waveguide adhesives, which significantly reduces the difficulty and cost of the preparation process.

[0056] In an embodiment of the present invention, the substrate 1 is a flexible film such as PI (polyimide) or PMMA (polymethyl methacrylate), and the upper cladding material is a flexible optical path adhesive. The existing flexible optical path adhesive is used as an adhesive, while the present invention uses the flexible optical path adhesive as the upper cladding 4 material. The flexible optical path adhesive provides a fully reflective mirror surface for the core layer 3 in the present invention, which not only realizes the reliable transmission of light in the core layer, but also proposes a new use of the flexible optical path adhesive.

[0057] The waveguide plate of the present invention has the characteristics of being easy to be laser etched and grayscale lithography. The 90° V-shaped groove is directly processed at the waveguide channel 5 of the waveguide plate, and the bottom of the 90° V-shaped groove is close to the substrate side of the waveguide plate, and the groove opening is located on the side of the upper cladding layer 4. At this time, the substrate 1 of the waveguide plate is made of high-transmittance material, and the light vertically turned by the 90° V-shaped groove is emitted from one side of the substrate 1. Preferably, the substrate 1 is made of PMMA film, but is not limited thereto.

[0058] A high-reflection film layer is also evaporated on the inner wall of the 90° V-shaped groove to enhance the reflection intensity and achieve total reflection. The light transmitted along the waveguide plate is vertically turned after passing through the 90° V-shaped groove and emitted from the substrate 1, thereby achieving vertical light emission from the waveguide plate.

[0059] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and does not limit the present invention in any form. Although the present invention has been disclosed as a preferred embodiment as above, it is not used to limit the present invention. Any technician familiar with the profession can make some changes or modify the technical contents disclosed above into equivalent embodiments without departing from the scope of the technical solution of the present invention. However, any simple modification, equivalent change and modification made to the above embodiments according to the technical essence of the present invention without departing from the content of the technical solution of the present invention still fall within the scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. A polymer waveguide component, comprising a waveguide plate and two coupling structures located at both ends of the waveguide plate, wherein both ends of the waveguide channel on the waveguide plate extend to form cantilevers, and the waveguide plate is connected to the coupling structures through the cantilevers, characterized in that: The coupling structure is provided with a coupling groove, and the two sides of the cantilever are limited by the two side walls of the coupling groove; the front end bottom of the coupling groove is provided with an array of V-shaped grooves, and the switching optical fiber is positioned and assembled in the V-shaped groove; the rear end bottom of the coupling groove is provided with a positioning plane for supporting the cantilever, the front end face of the cantilever located on the positioning plane is connected to the tail end face of the switching optical fiber, and the center line of its core layer coincides with the center line of the switching optical fiber in the corresponding V-shaped groove.

2. The polymer waveguide component according to claim 1, characterized in that: The coupling groove is also filled with optical path glue, through which the cantilever and the switching optical fiber are fixedly positioned and coupled.

3. The polymer waveguide component according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The coupling structure comprises a base and a cover plate, wherein the coupling slot is located on the base, and the cover plate is used to cover the coupling slot.

4. The polymer waveguide component according to claim 3, characterized in that: The lower end of the cover plate can enter the coupling slot and press on the cantilever and the switching optical fiber.

5. The polymer waveguide component according to claim 4, characterized in that: The cover plate is fixed in the coupling groove by means of glue on its bottom and two side end surfaces.

6. The polymer waveguide component according to any one of claims 1-2, 4-5, characterized in that: A guiding structure for guiding the coupling structure to dock with the adapting optical fiber connector is arranged on the front end surface of the coupling structure.

7. The polymer waveguide component according to claim 6, characterized in that: The coupling structure is also provided with a fixing cavity at the tail end, and the fixing cavity is used to fix the tail sheath or to contain glue for providing support and protection for the cantilever.

8. The polymer waveguide component according to claim 6, characterized in that: The waveguide plate is also provided with a vertical steering structure at the waveguide channel for realizing vertical light emission.

9. The polymer waveguide component according to claim 8, characterized in that: The base of the waveguide plate is made of a flexible film, the upper cladding is made of a flexible optical path adhesive, and the core layer and the lower cladding are both made of a hard material.

10. The polymer waveguide component according to claim 9, characterized in that: The vertical steering structure is a 90° V-shaped groove with a high reflection film layer evaporated on the surface, and the bottom of the 90° V-shaped groove is close to the substrate side of the waveguide plate, and the groove opening is located on the upper cladding side.

Images