Device for switching multiple monitoring spectrophotometers

Abstract

This invention provides a switchable multi-channel monitoring beam splitter device, comprising an optical switch having multiple input ports and one output port, the output port of which is connected to a photodetector. The device also includes multiple pairs of 2×2 optical couplers, each pair having two 2×2 optical couplers. The first output of each optical coupler outputs a light beam to an optical attenuator, which then outputs the attenuated light beam back to the optical switch. This invention allows for the detection of optical power across multiple beams using only a single photodetector, reducing the production cost of multi-channel monitoring systems.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the technical field of optical communication devices, specifically, to a device for a switchable multi-channel monitoring beam splitter. Background Technology

[0002] A spectrometer is a common optical device used to split a light beam and measure its optical power. It is widely used in fields such as spectral analysis and optical communication. Spectrometers can accurately monitor light beams in optical communication systems, including key parameters such as beam intensity and wavelength, thereby enabling power monitoring and management. Spectrometers can also be used for testing and calibration of optical communication systems, and performance evaluation of optical devices.

[0003] Existing spectrophotometers typically employ a combination of a spectrometer and a photodetector. In some multi-channel monitoring systems, it is necessary to monitor many lines in parallel, such as... Figure 1 As shown, a single-channel monitoring system requires beam splitters 11 and 12, and photodetectors 13 and 14. Beam splitter 11 divides the received light beam into two beams. The portion with higher optical power is used for further transmission, while approximately 5% of the beam's optical power is transmitted to photodetector 13 for power detection. Similarly, beam splitter 12 divides the received light beam into two beams. The portion with higher optical power is used for further transmission, while approximately 5% of the beam's optical power is transmitted to photodetector 14 for power detection. In a multi-channel monitoring system, multiple such structures exist. For example, in another monitoring system, beam splitters 15 and 16, and photodetectors 17 and 18 are required.

[0004] However, this type of monitoring system uses a large number of beam splitters and photodetectors, resulting in high production costs. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide a device for a switchable multi-channel monitoring spectrophotometer that uses a small number of photodetectors and has low production costs.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the device for a switchable multi-channel monitoring beam splitter provided by this utility model includes an optical switch, which has multiple input ports and one output port. The output port of the optical switch is connected to a photodetector. The device for the switchable multi-channel monitoring beam splitter also includes multiple pairs of 2×2 optical couplers. Each pair of optical couplers has two 2×2 optical couplers. The first output end of each optical coupler outputs a beam to an optical attenuator, and the optical attenuator outputs the attenuated beam to the optical switch.

[0007] As can be seen from the above scheme, by setting up an optical switch to switch different optical attenuators, the output beams of different optical couplers can be switched. In this way, only one photodetector is needed to collect the optical power of the output beams of different optical couplers at different times, thereby greatly reducing the number of photodetectors required and reducing the production cost of the multi-channel monitoring system.

[0008] A preferred approach is to connect the output of each optical attenuator to one input port of an optical switch.

[0009] Therefore, the beam output from each optical attenuator can be output to an optical switch, so that the beam output from each optical coupler can be selected by the optical switch, ensuring that each beam can be output to a photodetector for optical power detection.

[0010] A further approach is to have the number of optical couplers equal to the number of optical attenuators, and to set up a one-to-one correspondence between optical couplers and optical attenuators.

[0011] Since the number of optical couplers is equal to the number of optical attenuators, the waste of components caused by an excessive number of optical attenuators is avoided.

[0012] A further approach is to have a number of input ports for the optical switch that is greater than or equal to the number of optical couplers.

[0013] Therefore, the optical switch has a sufficient number of input ports to ensure that it can receive the beams output from all optical couplers, thus avoiding the situation where a beam from a certain path cannot be detected.

[0014] A further approach is to make the optical power output from the first output terminal of the optical coupler less than the optical power output from the second output terminal of the optical coupler.

[0015] Therefore, the optical power of the beams output from the two output terminals of the optical coupler is not equal. The beam with lower optical power is used for optical power detection, and the beam with higher optical power is used for signal propagation, so as to avoid the optical power of the beam that continues to propagate being too low.

[0016] A further approach involves the optical switch receiving a control signal from the controller. This allows the controller to control the operation of the optical switch, thereby controlling the switching of the currently detected light beam.

[0017] A further option is to use a mechanical switch or a microelectromechanical switch as the optical switch.

[0018] A further option is that the optical attenuator is a mechanical optical attenuator or a microelectromechanical optical attenuator. Preferably, the optical attenuator is an adjustable optical attenuator, and the optical attenuation intensity adjustment range of the adjustable optical attenuator is greater than or equal to 0dB.

[0019] Therefore, it can be seen that by using an adjustable optical attenuator, the optical power of the beam output by each optical coupler can be adjusted, thereby adjusting the splitting ratio in real time.

[0020] A further approach is to use a photodiode detector as the photodetector. Attached Figure Description

[0021] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an existing multi-component photodetector.

[0022] Figure 2 This is a structural schematic diagram of an embodiment of the present utility model.

[0023] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. Detailed Implementation

[0024] The switchable multi-channel monitoring beam splitter of this invention is suitable for systems that require monitoring the optical power of multiple optical channels. It uses an optical switch to switch the currently detected beam, thereby using a single photodetector to detect the optical power of multiple different beams.

[0025] See Figure 2 The switchable multi-channel monitoring beam splitter device of this embodiment has multiple optical couplers, multiple pairs of optical attenuators, an optical switch 40, and a photodetector 41. For example, in one optical path, a pair of optical couplers 20 are provided. Each pair of optical couplers 20 has two optical couplers, and each optical coupler is a 2×2 optical coupler, that is, each optical coupler has two input ports and two output ports. The optical power of the beams output by the two output ports is not equal.

[0026] For example, one of the optical couplers 20 has a first output terminal 21 and a second output terminal 22, where the optical power of the beam output from the first output terminal 21 is less than the optical power of the beam output from the second output terminal 22. For instance, the splitting ratio of the optical coupler is 5:95, meaning the optical power output from the first output terminal 21 accounts for 5%, and the optical power output from the second output terminal 22 accounts for 95%. Similarly, the other optical coupler in the pair 20 has a first output terminal 23 and a second output terminal 24, where the optical power of the beam output from the first output terminal 23 is less than the optical power of the beam output from the second output terminal 24.

[0027] In this embodiment, the number of optical attenuators is equal to the number of optical couplers, and the optical attenuators are also arranged in pairs. For example, a pair of optical attenuators, including optical attenuator 27 and optical attenuator 28, are arranged on an optical path. The first output terminal 21 of one optical coupler is connected to the input terminal of optical attenuator 27, and the first output terminal 22 of the other optical coupler is connected to the input terminal of optical attenuator 28. It can be seen that the output terminal with the lower output optical power of the two output terminals of the optical coupler is connected to the optical attenuator.

[0028] In this embodiment, each optical attenuator is an adjustable optical attenuator, that is, the attenuation range of the optical attenuator is adjustable. Preferably, the optical attenuation intensity adjustment range of the adjustable optical attenuator is greater than or equal to 0dB.

[0029] On another optical path, another pair of optical couplers 30 is provided. One of the optical couplers in this pair has a first output terminal 31 and a second output terminal 32. The optical power of the beam output from the first output terminal 31 is less than the optical power of the beam output from the second output terminal 32. For example, the splitting ratio of the optical coupler is 5:95. Similarly, the other optical coupler in the pair of optical couplers 30 has a first output terminal 33 and a second output terminal 34, and the optical power of the beam output from the first output terminal 33 is less than the optical power of the beam output from the second output terminal 34.

[0030] In addition, the optical path also includes a pair of optical attenuators, namely optical attenuator 37 and optical attenuator 38, wherein the first output terminal 31 of one optical coupler is connected to the input terminal of optical attenuator 37, and the first output terminal 32 of the other optical coupler is connected to the input terminal of optical attenuator 38.

[0031] In this embodiment, the number of optical attenuators is equal to the number of optical couplers, and the optical attenuators and optical couplers are configured in a one-to-one correspondence. That is, the signal output from each optical coupler passes through an optical attenuator before being output to the optical switch. The optical attenuator can be a mechanical optical attenuator or a microelectromechanical (MEMS) optical attenuator. For example, an optical attenuator may contain a reflector driven by a MEMS device, and the optical power of the output beam can be changed by altering the rotation angle of the reflector. After the optical beam output from the optical coupler passes through the optical attenuator, the optical power of the beam is attenuated, ensuring that the optical power incident on the photodetector 41 is not too high. Furthermore, since the optical attenuator is adjustable, the optical power of the beam can be dynamically adjusted according to actual needs to meet the requirements of the splitting ratio.

[0032] In this embodiment, the optical switch 40 is a 1×n optical switch, that is, the optical switch 40 has multiple input ports and one output port. Preferably, the number of input ports of the optical switch 40 is greater than or equal to the number of optical attenuators, so that the output end of each optical attenuator can be connected to one input port of the optical switch 40.

[0033] Furthermore, the optical switch 40 is connected to a controller and receives control signals sent by the controller, controlling the connection state of the optical switch 40 according to the control signals sent by the controller. Further, the optical switch 40 can be a mechanical switch or a microelectromechanical switch (MEMS). For example, the optical switch 40 is a reflective optical switch, which has a reflector. The reflector is rotated by a microelectromechanical device, thereby changing the reflected light path of the beam, thus realizing the selection and switching of the light path.

[0034] The output port of the optical switch 40 is connected to a photodetector 41, which is a photodiode detector used to detect the optical power of the beam. The photodetector 41 can be implemented using existing photodetectors. The optical switch 40 can receive multiple different beams; therefore, the photodetector 41 can detect the optical power of multiple beams. Specifically, when the optical switch 40 selects a particular beam, the photodetector 41 can detect the optical power of that beam.

[0035] Compared to traditional monitoring systems, this embodiment only requires a single photodetector to monitor the optical power of multiple beams. By setting up an optical switch to select different optical paths for detection, the number of photodetectors needed can be significantly reduced, thereby lowering the cost of detecting the optical power of multiple beams.

[0036] Finally, it should be emphasized that the above are only preferred embodiments of the present utility model and are not intended to limit the present utility model. For those skilled in the art, the present utility model can have various changes and modifications. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present utility model should be included within the protection scope of the present utility model.

Claims

1. A device for switching multiple monitoring optical detectors, comprising an optical switch having multiple input ports and one output port; Its features are: The output port of the optical switch is connected to the photodetector; The device for switchable multi-channel monitoring beam splitter also includes multiple pairs of 2×2 optical couplers, each pair of optical couplers having two 2×2 optical couplers, and the first output end of each optical coupler outputs a beam to an optical attenuator, which outputs the attenuated beam to the optical switch.

2. The device for a switchable multi-channel monitoring spectrophotometer according to claim 1, characterized in that: The output of each of the optical attenuators is connected to one of the input ports of the optical switch.

3. The device for a switchable multi-channel monitoring spectrophotometer according to claim 2, characterized in that: The number of optical couplers is equal to the number of optical attenuators, and the optical couplers and optical attenuators are configured in a one-to-one correspondence.

4. The device for a switchable multi-channel monitoring spectrophotometer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The number of input ports of the optical switch is greater than or equal to the number of the optical couplers.

5. The device for a switchable multi-channel monitoring spectrophotometer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The optical power output from the first output terminal of the optical coupler is less than the optical power output from the second output terminal of the optical coupler.

6. The apparatus for a switchable multi-channel monitoring spectrophotometer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The optical switch receives the control signal output by the controller.

7. The apparatus for a switchable multi-channel monitoring spectrophotometer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The optical switch is a mechanical switch or a microelectromechanical switch.

8. The apparatus for a switchable multi-channel monitoring spectrophotometer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The optical attenuator is either a mechanical optical attenuator or a microelectromechanical optical attenuator.

9. The apparatus for a switchable multi-channel monitoring spectrophotometer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The optical attenuator is an adjustable optical attenuator, and the optical attenuation intensity adjustment range of the adjustable optical attenuator is greater than or equal to 0dB.

10. The apparatus for a switchable multi-channel monitoring spectrophotometer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The photodetector is a photodiode detector.

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