Photon integrated chip and optical module

Abstract

The utility model provides a photonic integrated chip and an optical module, the photonic integrated chip comprises a first input port, a plurality of redundant input ports, a primary coupling optical splitter, a plurality of secondary coupling optical splitters and a plurality of optical modulators, the primary coupling optical splitter and the secondary coupling optical splitters are mutually cascaded, the first input port is connected with the primary coupling optical splitter, and the redundant input ports are connected with the secondary coupling optical splitters. The multiple redundant input ports are connected with the corresponding secondary coupling optical splitters respectively, branch waveguides of the secondary coupling optical splitters are connected to the corresponding optical modulators respectively, and a full-channel optical modulator set or a partial-channel optical modulator set can be achieved by selectively starting one or more of the first input port or the multiple redundant input ports. Therefore, the method is suitable for optical modules with different transmission distances and different channel numbers. According to the application, one photonic integrated chip can meet the requirements of optical modules of different models, and different photonic integrated chips do not need to be prepared for the optical modules of different models respectively, so that the manufacturing cost of the chip is reduced, and the material resource and inventory cost are saved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of optical communication technologies, and particularly to a photonic integrated chip and an optical module. Background Art

[0002] An optical module is an optoelectronic device for optoelectronic and electro-optical conversions in the optical communication industry. Its function is that at the transmitting end, an electrical signal is converted into an optical signal and transmitted through an optical fiber to an optical communication network, and at the receiving end, an optical signal is received from the optical communication network and converted into an electrical signal.

[0003] In optical modules, different models of products need to use independent devices, chips, layouts, and packaging technologies respectively. Even if these optical modules are products of the same series, if they each use independent supporting products, it will cause waste of some time, cost, or other resources, such as increasing the pressure of material classification and inventory. Utility Model Content

[0004] The purpose of the embodiments of this application is to provide a photonic integrated chip and an optical module. The photonic integrated chip can be commonly used in optical modules with different transmission distances or different numbers of channels, reducing the waste of resources in the design and manufacture of different series and different models of optical modules, and reducing the inventory pressure of the photonic integrated chip.

[0005] On one hand, the embodiments of this application provide a photonic integrated chip, which includes a first input port, a plurality of redundant input ports, a cascaded coupling optical splitter, and a plurality of optical modulators;

[0006] Wherein, the first input port and the redundant input ports are used to receive externally incident light;

[0007] The coupling optical splitter includes a primary coupling optical splitter and a plurality of secondary coupling optical splitters. The primary coupling optical splitter includes at least one input waveguide and a plurality of branch waveguides, and the secondary coupling optical splitter includes two input waveguides and a plurality of branch waveguides;

[0008] The input waveguide of the primary coupling optical splitter is connected to the first input port. One of the input waveguides of each secondary coupling optical splitter is connected to a branch waveguide of the primary coupling optical splitter or the secondary coupling optical splitter at its upper level, and the other input waveguide is connected to a redundant input port. Each branch waveguide except the last level is cascaded with a secondary coupling optical splitter at the next level; each branch waveguide of each secondary coupling optical splitter at the last level is respectively coupled to at least one optical modulator;

[0009] The first input port, the primary coupling optical splitter, the secondary coupling optical splitters, and the optical modulators are jointly used to construct a first full-channel optical modulator group;

[0010] The redundant input port, the secondary coupling optical splitter connected thereto, and the secondary coupling optical splitters and the optical modulators at subsequent levels are jointly used to construct a second full-channel optical modulator group or a partial-channel optical modulator group.

[0011] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides an optical module, including: a laser and the above-mentioned photonic integrated chip;

[0012] The number of the lasers is one, and the laser is optically coupled to the first input port;

[0013] Alternatively, the number of the lasers is the same as the number of redundant input ports used in the optical modulator group constructed by the photonic integrated chip in the optical module, and each laser is optically coupled to a corresponding redundant input port.

[0014] In the photonic integrated chip and the optical module provided by the embodiments of the present application, the first input port and all redundant input ports can realize the function that all splitting channels and all optical modulators are started to work, and a full-channel optical modulator group is constructed; when only some redundant input ports work, correspondingly only some splitting channels and some optical modulators are started to work, and a partial-channel optical modulator group is constructed; the full-channel optical modulator group or the partial-channel optical modulator group is respectively used for optical modules of different models. In this way, the photonic integrated chip can construct different types of optical modulator groups, which are respectively suitable for optical modules with different transmission distances and different channel numbers. Using one kind of photonic integrated chip can meet the requirements of different models of optical modules. On the one hand, there is no need to separately prepare different photonic integrated chips for different models of optical modules, which reduces the chip manufacturing cost, saves material resources and inventory costs, etc. On the other hand, only one set of mask plates is needed to manufacture photonic integrated chips applicable to multiple models, which reduces the chip manufacturing cost. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required to be used in the embodiments of the present application. It should be understood that the following drawings only show some embodiments of the present application, and therefore should not be regarded as a limitation of the scope. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other related drawings can also be obtained according to these drawings without creative efforts.

[0016] Figure 1 is one of the schematic diagrams of the optical path layout of the photonic integrated chip provided in this embodiment;

[0017] Figure 2 is one of the schematic diagrams of the optical path layout of the optical module and its photonic integrated chip provided in this embodiment;

[0018] Figure 3 It is the second schematic diagram of the optical path layout of the optical module and its photonic integrated chip provided in this embodiment;

[0019] Figure 4 It is the third schematic diagram of the optical path layout of the optical module and its photonic integrated chip provided in this embodiment;

[0020] Figure 5 It is the second schematic diagram of the optical path layout of the photonic integrated chip provided in this embodiment.

[0021] Icons: 10 - Photonic integrated chip; 11 - Laser; 101 - First input port; 102 - Redundant input port; 201 - Primary coupling splitter; 201a - Input waveguide; 201b - Branch waveguide; 202 - Secondary coupling splitter; 202.2 - Second - level coupling splitter; 202.3 - Third - level coupling splitter; 202a - Input waveguide; 202b - Branch waveguide; 301 - Channel splitter; 301a - Input end; 301b - Output end; 400 - Optical modulator; 401 - First monitoring detector; 402 - Second monitoring detector. Detailed implementation manners

[0022] Next, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application.

[0023] In the description of the present application, it should be noted that the orientation or positional relationship indicated by terms such as "inside", "outside", etc. is based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, or the orientation or positional relationship when the product of this application is normally placed. It is only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and thus should not be construed as a limitation to the present application. In addition, terms such as "first", "second", etc. are only used for descriptive distinction and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0024] It should also be noted that unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "set", "connect" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be directly connected, or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, and it can be the communication inside two elements. For those of ordinary skill in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present application can be understood according to specific situations.

[0025] Please refer to Figures 1 to 5, embodiments of the present application provide a photonic integrated chip 10, which may be, for example, a silicon photonics chip or a chip made of other materials; the photonic integrated chip 10 includes a first input port 101, a plurality of redundant input ports 102, a cascaded coupling optical splitter, and a plurality of optical modulators 400. Among them, the first input port 101 and the redundant input ports 102 are used to receive externally incident light.

[0026] The cascaded coupling optical splitter includes at least one primary coupling optical splitter 201 and a plurality of secondary coupling optical splitters 202. The primary coupling optical splitter 201 includes at least one input waveguide 201a and a plurality of branch waveguides 201b. The secondary coupling optical splitter 202 includes two input waveguides 202a and a plurality of branch waveguides 202b.

[0027] The input waveguide 201a of the primary coupling optical splitter 201 is connected to the first input port 101. One of the input waveguides 202a of each secondary coupling optical splitter 202 is connected to a branch waveguide 202b of the primary coupling optical splitter 201 or the secondary coupling optical splitter 202 at its upper level, and the other input waveguide 202a is connected to a redundant input port 102. Each branch waveguide 202b except the last level is cascaded with a secondary coupling optical splitter 202 at the next level; each branch waveguide 202b of each secondary coupling optical splitter 202 at the last level is respectively coupled to at least one optical modulator 400.

[0028] The first input port 101, the primary coupling optical splitter 201, the secondary coupling optical splitter 202, and the optical modulator 400 are jointly used to construct a first full-channel optical modulator group.

[0029] The redundant input port 102, the secondary coupling optical splitter 202 connected thereto, and the secondary coupling optical splitters 202 and optical modulators 400 at subsequent levels are jointly used to construct a second full-channel optical modulator group or a partial-channel optical modulator group.

[0030] After the light emitted by the external light source is incident through the first input port 101 or the corresponding redundant input port 102, it is divided into different numbers of optical paths by the corresponding cascaded coupling optical splitter, and finally output after being modulated by the optical modulators 400 on different optical paths.

[0031] Each secondary coupling optical splitter 202 has two input waveguides 202a. One of the input waveguides 202a is connected to the branch waveguide 201b of the primary coupling optical splitter 201 at its previous stage, and the other input waveguide 202a is connected to a redundant input port 102, enabling it to receive the light output from the primary coupling optical splitter 201 and also the light from the corresponding redundant input port 102. Thus, different cascaded coupling optical splitters with different numbers of optical splitting channels can be constructed through different combinations of the first input port 101 or the redundant input port 102 and the primary coupling optical splitter 201 and the secondary coupling optical splitters 202 connected thereto. When an external light source is connected to the first input port 101 or different redundant input ports 102, it is equivalent to activating the corresponding optical splitting channels, and the light is input into the corresponding optical modulator 400 through the corresponding optical splitting channels and output after being modulated by the optical modulator 400.

[0032] For example, when an external light source is connected to the first input port 101, the first input port 101 and its corresponding cascaded coupling optical splitter and optical modulator 400 can construct a first full-channel optical modulator group, that is, all optical splitting channels are opened, and all corresponding optical modulators 400 are enabled to modulate optical signals.

[0033] When an external light source is connected to all the redundant input ports 102, all the redundant input ports 102 and their corresponding coupling optical splitters and optical modulators 400 can construct a second full-channel optical modulator group, that is, all optical splitting channels are opened, and all corresponding optical modulators 400 are enabled to modulate optical signals.

[0034] Both the first full-channel optical modulator group and the second full-channel optical modulator group enable all optical modulators and have the same number of channels. The difference is that the first full-channel optical modulator only requires one external light source, while the second full-channel optical modulator group requires at least two external light sources.

[0035] In the case of the same required transmission distance, that is, when the optical power output from each optical splitting channel is the same, the first full-channel optical modulator group requires a higher optical power for the external light source, while the second full-channel optical modulator group can use a light source with a lower optical power.

[0036] In the case of the same optical power of the external light source, since the first full-channel optical modulator group only has the light received by the first input port 101, the optical power distributed to each optical splitting channel will be lower than that of each optical splitting channel of the second full-channel optical modulator group. Therefore, the optical signal output therefrom can be transmitted over a shorter distance. In this case, the second full-channel optical modulator group is suitable for optical modules with longer transmission distance requirements, while the first full-channel optical modulator group is suitable for optical modules with shorter transmission distance requirements.

[0037] When the number of required spectral splitting channels is small, one or several redundant input ports 102, and their corresponding secondary coupled spectral splitters 202 and optical modulators 400 can be selected to construct a partial channel optical modulator group, that is, only some of the spectral splitting channels are opened, and the corresponding optical modulators 400 are enabled to modulate the optical signal. Similarly, the partial channel optical modulator group can also select and enable different numbers of redundant input ports 102 according to different requirements of the transmission distance and the optical power of the external light source to meet the requirements of the output optical power of the spectral splitting channels.

[0038] That is, the optical module can include a laser 11 and the above-mentioned photonic integrated chip 10. The laser 11 is optically coupled to the first input port 101 of the photonic integrated chip 10 to achieve full-channel optical signal output.

[0039] Alternatively, the optical module can also include multiple lasers 11 and the above-mentioned photonic integrated chip 10. The number of lasers 11 is the same as the number of redundant input ports 102 used in the optical modulator group constructed by the photonic integrated chip 10 in the optical module. Each laser 11 is optically coupled to a corresponding redundant input port 102 to achieve the output of optical signals with the required number of channels.

[0040] It can be seen that the photonic integrated chip 10 can select to use its first input port 101 or redundant input port 102 and the primary coupled spectral splitter 201 and secondary coupled spectral splitter 202 connected thereto, etc., to construct the first full-channel optical modulator group, the second full-channel optical modulator group or the partial channel optical modulator group for different models of optical modules respectively.

[0041] Using one kind of photonic integrated chip 10 can meet the requirements of different models of optical modules. On the one hand, there is no need to prepare different photonic integrated chips 10 for different models of optical modules respectively, which reduces the chip manufacturing cost, saves material resources and inventory costs, etc. On the other hand, only one set of mask plates is needed to manufacture the photonic integrated chip 10 applicable to multiple models during chip manufacturing, which reduces the chip manufacturing cost.

[0042] The following will be described through different embodiments.

[0043] In some embodiments, as Figure 1 shown, in this photonic integrated chip, the number of redundant input ports 102 and secondary coupled spectral splitters 202 is two each. The primary coupled spectral splitter 201 and secondary coupled spectral splitter 202 each include two branch waveguides; the number of optical modulators is four, and one branch waveguide 202b of each secondary coupled spectral splitter 202 is connected to an optical modulator 400.

[0044] Among them, the first input port 101, the first-stage coupled optical splitter 201, two secondary coupled optical splitters 202, and four optical modulators 400 can jointly construct a four-channel optical modulator group. Alternatively, two redundant input ports 102, two secondary coupled optical splitters 202, and four optical modulators 400 can jointly construct a four-channel optical modulator group. Alternatively, one redundant input port 102, one secondary coupled optical splitter 202, and two optical modulators 400 can jointly construct a two-channel optical modulator group. That is, the photon integration chip 10 of this embodiment is universal for the four-channel optical modulator group and the two-channel optical modulator group, and can be applied to four-channel optical modules with different distance requirements, or to two-channel optical modules.

[0045] Exemplarily, the optical module provided in this embodiment includes the photon integration chip 10 of the above embodiment and a laser. The laser 11 is optically coupled to the first input port 101. That is to say, at this time, only the first input port 101 is enabled. The first input port 101 receives the light emitted by the laser 11 and transmits it to the input waveguide 201a of the first-stage coupled optical splitter 201. The light is split into two paths by the first-stage coupled optical splitter 201 and is respectively transmitted to two secondary coupled optical splitters 202 through its two branch waveguides 201b. For any one of the secondary coupled optical splitters 202, the incoming light is split into two paths by the secondary coupled optical splitter 202 and is respectively transmitted to the corresponding optical modulator 400 through its two branch waveguides 202b for modulation and then output, realizing an optical module for four-channel optical signals. The optical module of this embodiment only needs one laser 11 to provide a light source, and finally divides the light source into four paths for modulation respectively to output four modulated optical signals. The optical power of a single optical signal is small, which is suitable for optical modules with short-distance transmission requirements.

[0046] Alternatively, the optical module includes the photon integration chip 10 of the above embodiment and two lasers 11. The two lasers 11 are respectively optically coupled to the two redundant input ports 102. At this time, the two redundant input ports 102 are enabled. The two redundant input ports 102 receive the light emitted by the lasers 11 and directly transmit it to the two secondary coupled optical splitters 202. For any one of the secondary coupled optical splitters 202, the incoming light is split into two paths by the secondary coupled optical splitter 202 and is respectively transmitted to the corresponding optical modulator 400 through its two branch waveguides 202b for modulation and then output, realizing an optical module for four-channel optical signals. The optical module of this embodiment requires two lasers to provide two light sources. The two light sources are divided into four paths for modulation respectively, and finally four modulated optical signals are output. The optical power of a single optical signal is large, which is suitable for optical modules with longer-distance transmission requirements.

[0047] Another optical module includes the photonic integrated chip 10 of the above embodiment and a laser 11. The laser 11 is optically coupled to one of the redundant input ports 102. At this time, only this one redundant input port 102 of the photonic integrated chip 10 is enabled, realizing an optical module for two-channel optical signals.

[0048] In some other embodiments, such as Figure 2 , Figure 3 , Figure 4 shown, belonging to the same photonic integrated chip 10, different optical modules are formed by combining with lasers according to different requirements.

[0049] In the photonic integrated chip 10 of this embodiment, the number of redundant input ports 102 and secondary coupling beam splitters 202 is two each. The primary coupling beam splitter 201 and the secondary coupling beam splitters 202 each include two branch waveguides; the number of optical modulators 400 is eight.

[0050] The photonic integrated chip 10 further includes four channel beam splitters 301. Each channel beam splitter 301 includes an input end 301a and two output ends 301b. Each branch waveguide 202b of each secondary coupling beam splitter 202 is connected to the input end 301a of a channel beam splitter 301, and the output end 301b of each channel beam splitter 301 is connected to an optical modulator 400.

[0051] Among them, the first input port 101, the primary coupling beam splitter 201, the two secondary coupling beam splitters 202, the four channel beam splitters 301, and the eight optical modulators 400 can jointly construct an eight-channel optical modulator group.

[0052] Alternatively, the two redundant input ports 102, the two secondary coupling beam splitters 202, the four channel beam splitters 301, and the eight optical modulators 400 can jointly construct an eight-channel optical modulator group.

[0053] Alternatively, one redundant input port 102, one secondary coupling beam splitter 202, two channel beam splitters 301, and four optical modulators 400 can jointly construct a four-channel optical modulator. That is, the photonic integrated chip of this embodiment is universal for an eight-channel optical modulator group and a four-channel optical modulator group, and can be applied to eight-channel optical modules with different distance requirements or four-channel optical modules.

[0054] Exemplarily, referring to Figure 2, the optical module provided by this embodiment includes the photonic integrated chip 10 of the above embodiment and a laser 11. The laser 11 is optically coupled to the first input port 101. That is to say, at this time, only the first input port 101 is enabled. The first input port 101 receives the light emitted by the laser 11 and transmits it to the input waveguide 201a of the first-stage coupled optical splitter 201. The light is split into two paths by the first-stage coupled optical splitter 201 and is respectively transmitted to two secondary coupled optical splitters 202 through its two branch waveguides 201b. For any one of the secondary coupled optical splitters 202, the incoming light is split into two paths by this secondary coupled optical splitter 202 and is respectively transmitted to the corresponding channel optical splitter 301 through its two branch waveguides 202b. Each channel optical splitter 301 further splits the light it receives into two paths and transmits them to two optical modulators 400 respectively. So far, after the light emitted by the laser 11 is input through the first input port 101, it is split into eight paths of light by the cascaded coupled optical splitter and the channel optical splitter 301. The eight paths of light are then modulated by eight optical modulators 400 respectively and output, realizing an optical module for eight-channel optical signals. The optical module of this embodiment only needs one laser 11 to provide a light source, and finally divides the light source into eight paths for modulation respectively to output eight paths of modulated optical signals. The optical power of the single-path optical signal output is small, which is suitable for optical modules with short-distance transmission requirements.

[0055] Referring to Figure 3 as an example, the optical module of this embodiment includes the photonic integrated chip 10 of the above embodiment and two lasers 11. The two lasers 11 and the two redundant input ports 102 are in one-to-one correspondence. One laser 11 is connected to one redundant input port 102. At this time, both of the two redundant input ports 102 are open. Taking one of the redundant input ports 102 as an example, this redundant input port 102 receives the light emitted by the laser 11 and transmits it to one of the input waveguides 202a of the secondary coupled optical splitter 202. The light entering the secondary coupled optical splitter 202 through this input waveguide 202a is split into two paths and is respectively output through the two branch waveguides 202b of this secondary coupled optical splitter 202. The two paths of light are respectively input through the input ends 301a of the two channel optical splitters 301 and are each split into two paths and output from the two output ends of the two corresponding channel optical splitters 301. Finally, it is split into four paths of light and modulated by four optical modulators 400 and four paths of modulated optical signals are output. The two redundant input ports 102 are enabled at the same time. The two paths of light received are split into eight paths of light by the secondary coupled optical splitter and the channel optical splitter, and are respectively modulated by eight optical modulators 400, and eight paths of modulated optical signals are output, realizing an eight-channel optical module.

[0056] The optical module of this embodiment needs two lasers 11 to provide a light source, and finally divides the two paths of light sources into eight paths for modulation respectively to output eight paths of modulated optical signals. Compared with the optical module of the previous embodiment, the optical power of the single-path optical signal output is larger, and the applicable transmission distance is also longer.

[0057] Figure 4 In the example, the optical module of this embodiment includes the photonic integrated chip 10 of the above embodiment and a laser 11. The laser 11 is coupled to one of the redundant input ports 102. At this time, only one redundant input port 102 is open. The redundant input port 102 receives the light emitted by the laser 11 and transmits it to one of the input waveguides 202a of the secondary coupling optical splitter 202. The light entering the secondary coupling optical splitter 202 through the input waveguide 202a is split into two paths and output through the two branch waveguides 202b of the secondary coupling optical splitter 202. The two paths of light are respectively input through the input ports 301a of the two channel optical splitters 301 and each is split into two paths and output through the two output ports of the two corresponding channel optical splitters 301. Ultimately, the four paths of light are modulated by four optical modulators 400, and the four modulated optical signals are output, thus realizing a four-channel optical module.

[0058] That is, the optical module of this embodiment uses only one laser as a light source and enables only one redundant input port 102. The redundant input port and the corresponding one secondary coupling optical splitter 202, two channel optical splitters 301, and four optical modulators 400 form a partial channel optical modulator group with four channels, which is used in an optical module with four channels.

[0059] As can be seen, when the first input port 101 or all redundant input ports 102 are enabled, full-channel optical modules can be adapted. When only some redundant input ports 102 are enabled, half-channel optical modules can be quickly adapted. In other words, the photonic integrated chip is compatible with both eight-channel and four-channel optical modules of different models and transmission distance requirements, offering high versatility and effectively reducing costs.

[0060] Also refer to Figure 5 The embodiment shown provides a photonic integrated chip with sixteen channels, wherein the number of redundant input ports 102 and the number of secondary coupling splitters 202 are both six, the primary coupling splitter 201 and the secondary coupling splitter 202 respectively include two branch waveguides; the number of optical modulators 400 is sixteen.

[0061] Two of the six secondary coupling optical splitters 202 are secondary coupling optical splitters 202 . 2 , and the remaining four are tertiary coupling optical splitters 202 . 3 .

[0062] The photon integrated chip 10 further includes eight channel splitters 301. Each channel splitter 301 includes an input end 301a and two output ends 301b. Each branch waveguide 202b of each three-stage coupled splitter 202.3 is connected to the input end 301a of a channel splitter 301, and the output end 301b of each channel splitter 301 is connected to an optical modulator 400.

[0063] Among them, the first input port 101, the first-stage coupled splitter 201, two second-stage coupled splitters 202.2, four third-stage coupled splitters 202.3, eight channel splitters 301, and sixteen optical modulators 400 can jointly construct a sixteen-channel optical modulator group.

[0064] Alternatively, two second-stage coupled splitters 202.2 and the two redundant input ports 102 connected thereto, four third-stage coupled splitters 202.3, eight channel splitters 301, and sixteen optical modulators 400 can jointly construct a sixteen-channel optical modulator group;

[0065] Alternatively, four third-stage coupled splitters 202.3 and the four redundant input ports 102 connected thereto, eight channel splitters 301, and sixteen optical modulators 400 can jointly construct a sixteen-channel optical modulator group;

[0066] Alternatively, one second-stage coupled splitter 202.2 and the one redundant input port 102 connected thereto, two third-stage coupled splitters 202.3, four channel splitters 301, and eight optical modulators 400 can jointly construct an eight-channel optical modulator group;

[0067] Alternatively, two third-stage coupled splitters 202.3 and the two redundant input ports 102 connected thereto, four channel splitters 301, and eight optical modulators 400 can jointly construct an eight-channel optical modulator group;

[0068] Alternatively, one third-stage coupled splitter 202.3 and the one redundant input port 102 connected thereto, two channel splitters 301, and four optical modulators 400 can jointly construct a four-channel optical modulator group.

[0069] The optical module using the photon integrated chip 10 of this embodiment may include a laser 11. The laser 11 is optically coupled to the first input port 101, and a sixteen-channel optical module can be constructed, which is suitable for application scenarios with relatively short transmission distance requirements. Moreover, since one light source needs to be divided into sixteen paths of light, a laser 11 with a relatively large optical power is required. In some embodiments, the laser 11 can also be optically coupled to a redundant input port 102 to construct an eight-channel optical module or a four-channel optical module.

[0070] The optical module using the photonic integrated chip 10 of this embodiment may also include two lasers 11, and these two lasers 11 are respectively optically coupled to two redundant input ports 102, and an optical module with sixteen channels, or an optical module with twelve channels, or an optical module with eight channels can be constructed.

[0071] The optical module using the photonic integrated chip 10 of this embodiment may also include four lasers 11, and these four lasers 11 are respectively optically coupled to four redundant input ports 102, and an optical module with sixteen channels can be constructed. Compared with the aforementioned sixteen-channel optical module, in this embodiment, since four lasers are used as light sources and each light source is divided into four paths of light, the single-path optical power is relatively high, and a longer distance can be transmitted.

[0072] In summary, the photonic integrated chip 10 of this embodiment can be applied to optical modules with different requirements from sixteen channels to four channels, and has high versatility.

[0073] The above Figures 1 to 5 In the above example, the first-level coupling optical splitter 201 includes two branch waveguides 201b to divide the light into two paths, and the secondary coupling optical splitter 202 also includes two branch waveguides 202b to divide the light into two paths. Among them, the first-level coupling optical splitter 201 and the channel optical splitter 301 are both 1×2 power equalizers; the secondary coupling optical splitter 202 is a 2×2 optical power equalizer.

[0074] In some embodiments, the branch waveguides of each coupling optical splitter can also be three or more.

[0075] In addition, the first input port 101 can be an edge coupler, a front coupler or a back coupler; the redundant input port 102 can be an edge coupler, a front coupler or a back coupler.

[0076] On this basis, in any of the above Figures 1 to 5 examples, a first monitoring detector 401 can also be arranged at the input end of the optical modulator 400 to detect the optical power of the light input into the optical modulator 400.

[0077] Similarly, a second monitoring detector 402 can also be arranged at the output end of the optical modulator 400 to detect the optical power output by the optical modulator 400.

[0078] Each of the above optical modulators 400 corresponds to a splitting optical channel, and the number of splitting optical channels is 2 n , where n is a natural number greater than 1, and the larger the value of n, the more splitting optical channels can be matched.

[0079] Exemplarily, the above optical modulator 400 is an MZM (Mach-Zehnder modulators) modulator, that is, a Mach-Zehnder modulator. In some embodiments, the optical modulator 400 may also adopt other optical modulators, such as microring modulators, etc.

[0080] The above optical path layout of the photon integration chip 10 according to the embodiments of the present application supports the requirements of optical modules with different transmission distances and different numbers of channels. The first input port 101 and the redundant input port 102 are not enabled simultaneously, and different input ports can be flexibly matched according to requirements to reduce resource waste. The photon integration chip 10 is also applicable to other integration platforms, including but not limited to heterogeneous integration, hybrid integration, etc.; the materials used include but not limited to silicon, silicon nitride, lithium niobate, group III-V materials, electro-optic materials, and other semiconductor materials.

[0081] The above are only the embodiments of the present application and are not used to limit the protection scope of the present application. For those skilled in the art, the present application may have various changes and modifications. Any modifications, equivalent replacements, improvements, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present application shall be included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A photonic integrated chip, characterized in that, The photon integrated chip includes a first input port, a plurality of redundant input ports, a cascaded coupling optical splitter, and a plurality of optical modulators; Among them, the first input port and the redundant input ports are used to receive externally incident light; The coupling optical splitter includes a primary coupling optical splitter and a plurality of secondary coupling optical splitters. The primary coupling optical splitter includes at least one input waveguide and a plurality of branch waveguides, and the secondary coupling optical splitter includes two input waveguides and a plurality of branch waveguides; The input waveguide of the primary coupling optical splitter is connected to the first input port. One of the input waveguides of each secondary coupling optical splitter is connected to a branch waveguide of the primary coupling optical splitter or the secondary coupling optical splitter at its upper level, and the other input waveguide is connected to a redundant input port. Each branch waveguide except the last level is cascaded with a secondary coupling optical splitter at the next level; Each branch waveguide of each secondary coupling optical splitter at the last level is respectively coupled to at least one optical modulator; The first input port, the primary coupling optical splitter, the secondary coupling optical splitter, and the optical modulators are jointly used to construct a first full-channel optical modulator group; The redundant input ports, the secondary coupling optical splitters connected thereto, and the secondary coupling optical splitters and optical modulators at subsequent levels are jointly used to construct a second full-channel optical modulator group or a partial-channel optical modulator group.

2. The photon integrated chip according to claim 1, wherein The number of the redundant input ports and the secondary coupling optical splitters is two each. The primary coupling optical splitter and the secondary coupling optical splitter respectively include two branch waveguides; The number of the optical modulators is four; One branch waveguide of each secondary coupling optical splitter is connected to one optical modulator; The first input port, the primary coupling optical splitter, two secondary coupling optical splitters, and four optical modulators jointly construct a four-channel optical modulator group; Alternatively, two redundant input ports, two secondary coupling optical splitters, and four optical modulators jointly construct a four-channel optical modulator group; Alternatively, one redundant input port, one secondary coupling optical splitter, and two optical modulators jointly construct a two-channel optical modulator group.

3. The photon integrated chip according to claim 1, characterized in that, The number of the redundant input ports and the secondary coupling optical splitters is two each. The primary coupling optical splitter and the secondary coupling optical splitter respectively include two branch waveguides; The number of the optical modulators is eight; The photon integrated chip further includes four channel optical splitters. Each channel optical splitter includes an input end and two output ends. Each branch waveguide of each secondary coupling optical splitter is connected to an input end of a channel optical splitter, and an output end of each channel optical splitter is connected to an optical modulator; The first input port, the primary coupling optical splitter, two secondary coupling optical splitters, four channel optical splitters, and eight optical modulators jointly construct an eight-channel optical modulator group; Alternatively, two redundant input ports, two secondary coupling optical splitters, four channel optical splitters, and eight optical modulators jointly construct an eight-channel optical modulator group; Alternatively, one of the redundant input ports, one of the secondary coupling splitters, two of the channel splitters, and four of the optical modulators together form a four-channel optical modulator group.

4. The photon integrated chip according to claim 1, characterized in that, The number of the redundant input ports and the secondary coupling splitters is six each. The primary coupling splitter and the secondary coupling splitter each include two branch waveguides. The number of the optical modulators is sixteen. Two of the six secondary coupling splitters are secondary-level coupling splitters, and the remaining four are tertiary-level coupling splitters. The photonic integrated chip further includes eight channel splitters. Each channel splitter includes an input end and two output ends. Each branch waveguide of each tertiary-level coupling splitter is connected to the input end of one channel splitter, and the output end of each channel splitter is connected to one optical modulator. The first input port, the primary coupling splitter, two of the secondary-level coupling splitters, four of the tertiary-level coupling splitters, eight of the channel splitters, and sixteen of the optical modulators together form a sixteen-channel optical modulator group. Alternatively, two of the secondary-level coupling splitters and the two redundant input ports connected thereto, four of the tertiary-level coupling splitters, eight of the channel splitters, and sixteen of the optical modulators together form a sixteen-channel optical modulator group. Alternatively, four of the tertiary-level coupling splitters and the four redundant input ports connected thereto, eight of the channel splitters, and sixteen of the optical modulators together form a sixteen-channel optical modulator group. Alternatively, one of the secondary-level coupling splitters and the one redundant input port connected thereto, two of the tertiary-level coupling splitters, four of the channel splitters, and eight of the optical modulators together form an eight-channel optical modulator group. Alternatively, two of the tertiary-level coupling splitters and the two redundant input ports connected thereto, four of the channel splitters, and eight of the optical modulators together form an eight-channel optical modulator group. Alternatively, one of the tertiary-level coupling splitters and the one redundant input port connected thereto, two of the channel splitters, and four of the optical modulators together form a four-channel optical modulator group.

5. The photonic integrated chip according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that, The channel splitter is a 1×2 optical power equalizer.

6. The photonic integrated chip according to claim 1, wherein The first input port is an edge coupler, a front coupler, or a back coupler. The redundant input port is an edge coupler, a front coupler, or a back coupler.

7. The photonic integrated chip according to claim 1, characterized in that, The primary coupling splitter is a 1×2 optical power equalizer, and the secondary coupling splitter is a 2×2 optical power equalizer.

8. The photonic integrated chip according to any one of claims 1 to 4, 6 to 7, characterized in that, A first monitoring detector is provided at the input end of the optical modulator for detecting the optical power input to the optical modulator.

9. The photonic integrated chip according to any one of claims 1 to 4, 6 to 7, characterized in that, A second monitoring detector is provided at the output end of the optical modulator for detecting the optical power output by the optical modulator.

10. An optical module, characterized in that, It includes a laser and the photonic integrated chip according to any one of claims 1 to 9. The number of the lasers is one, and the laser is optically coupled to the first input port. Alternatively, the number of the lasers is the same as the number of redundant input ports used by the optical modulator group constructed by the photonic integrated chip in the optical module, and each of the lasers is optically coupled to a corresponding redundant input port.

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