Waveguide Excitation Uniformity via Vertical Mode Modulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing instruments for massively-parallel analysis of biological or chemical samples face challenges such as large size, lack of portability, high power demands, need for controlled environments, and high costs, limiting their application beyond laboratory settings.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising an array of reaction chambers and a waveguide that delivers excitation light, where the vertical extent of the optical mode of the waveguide is modulated to adjust light confinement, and the distance between the waveguide and reaction chambers is controlled to compensate for waveguide losses, ensuring uniform light distribution across the reaction chambers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If a waveguide delivers excitation light to an array of reaction chambers, then light distribution is achieved, but non-uniform illumination occurs causing overpower in some regions and underpower in others
Solution Approach 1:
The waveguide structure is modified with varying thickness along its length, creating different optical confinement characteristics in different regions. This local variation in waveguide geometry allows tailored light distribution to different reaction chambers, ensuring uniform illumination across the array despite the inherent exponential decay of evanescent fields.
Solution Approach 2:
The effective refractive index of the waveguide is dynamically adjusted by changing the thickness of the core layer or the distance to the reaction chambers. This parameter modulation compensates for waveguide losses and maintains consistent excitation intensity across all reaction chambers in the array.
2Productivity
If waveguide losses are not compensated, then excitation efficiency decreases, but increasing light source power causes overpower in certain regions
Solution Approach 1:
The waveguide is designed with region-specific characteristics where the thickness or distance parameters are locally optimized. Regions with higher losses have adjusted parameters to compensate, while regions with lower losses have corresponding adjustments, achieving uniform excitation efficiency across all reaction chambers without requiring excessive overall power.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs dynamic adjustment of waveguide parameters (thickness or distance) along the waveguide length to adapt to changing loss conditions. This dynamic compensation ensures that excitation efficiency is maintained at optimal levels across the entire array, preventing both underpower and overpower conditions.
3Ease of manufacture
If the waveguide structure is simplified, then manufacturing is easier, but uniform light distribution to multiple reaction chambers cannot be achieved
Solution Approach 1:
Rather than requiring complex multi-layer or three-dimensional waveguide structures, the invention achieves uniform light distribution by simply varying the thickness of a single core layer or the distance to reaction chambers along the waveguide length. This approach maintains manufacturing simplicity while achieving the desired optical uniformity.
Solution Approach 2:
The waveguide design utilizes continuous or stepped variations in geometric parameters (thickness or distance) along its length to achieve uniform light distribution. These parameter changes can be implemented using standard semiconductor fabrication techniques, maintaining ease of manufacture while achieving the complex optical performance required.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables more uniform distribution of excitation light to the reaction chambers, improves excitation efficiency, and prevents overpower on regions of the integrated device, allowing for compact, portable, and cost-effective analysis of biological or chemical samples.
Implementation Method 1
a waveguide that delivers excitation light to at least a portion of the reaction chambers
Implementation Method 2
a vertical extent of an optical mode of the waveguide is modulated to adjust confinement of light within the waveguide
Implementation Method 3
Analysis of biological or chemical samples may involve tagging samples with luminescent markers that emit light of a particular wavelength, illuminating with a light source the tagged samples, and detecting the luminescent light with a photodetector
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for optical power distribution within an integrated device, in a substantially uniform manner, to a large number of sample wells and/or other photonic elements. The integrated device and related instruments and systems may be used to analyze samples in parallel. The integrated device may include a grating coupler configured to receive light from an excitation source and optically couple with multiple waveguides configured to couple with sample wells. Vertical extents of optical modes of individual waveguides may be modulated to adjust confinement of light within the waveguides. This modulation may enable more uniform distribution of excitation light to the sample wells, improve excitation efficiency, and prevent overpower on regions of the integrated device.