Switching mechanism of an all-optical switch using pulsed gating

Abstract

A versatile optically gated optical switch using an organic dye is suitable for light-path switching in an optical communication device for various wavelengths of the signal light. We have developed two types of all-optical switch, i.e., a coaxial configuration and a different-axis configuration. The coaxial configuration exhibits a faster response (∼80 µs) than the different-axis configuration (∼3 ms). Here, the response time of the signal light (1310 nm) is analyzed as a function of both the gating power (pulse height) and pulse width of the gating light (980 nm). The heating and propagation processes in a tiny area around the focal point of both the signal light and the gating light are discussed.

Thermal lensing: outside of the lasing medium

“…Earlier, for instance, Bialkowski [175] proposed the use of TL as an optical switching device that on demand refracts the signal beam in the desired direction/ port of another device. A similar switch was proposed by Tanaka et al [176,177], who additionally presented another type of switch in [178]. It was built of a TO slab in which a TL could be formed by activating the HL beam.…”