JP2006003673A - Optical waveguide device, light source device, and optical information processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the light loss, reduce the size and cost, and reduce the polarization dependency of the transmittance and reflectance by the filter, so that the wavelength of the transmitted light and the wavelength of the reflected light are narrower. To provide an optical waveguide device that divides and multiplexes or demultiplexes a plurality of lights having different wavelengths, a light source device that is suitable as a point light source device such as a small display using the same, and an optical information processing device .
SOLUTION: An optical waveguide layer 2 comprising a joined body of a clad 3 having a shape of a pentagon ABCDE whose side DE intersects the side BA at an acute angle of 45 degrees and a core 4-6 is formed. The core 4 is provided in a straight line from the side AB to the side CD substantially perpendicular to the side AB, and the cores 5 and 6 are provided in a straight line from the side DE to the intersection 7 or 9 with the core 4 substantially perpendicular to the side DE. At the intersection, the core 4 is divided and wavelength selective filters 8 and 10 are provided. When combining is performed, light is incident from the light incident or exit end faces 11 to 13, and the combined light is extracted from the light exit or incident end face 14.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical waveguide device that multiplexes or demultiplexes a plurality of lights having different wavelengths, a light source device using the same, a light source device suitable as a point light source device such as a small display, and an optical information processing device. .

  In recent years, electronic devices, particularly portable electronic devices, have been required to be small and light and have multiple functions. Under such a trend, image data is also handled in portable electronic devices, and how to realize a function of displaying a fine image in an easy-to-view manner has become an issue.

  For example, since the retinal display disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 11-505627 discloses an image formed on the retina of the user's eye, the area occupied by the screen display can be reduced and the size can be reduced. It is highly expected as a display device that can achieve both high-definition display and high-definition display. In a small display such as a retina display, it is one of the future issues to reduce the size and weight of a light source device and other devices that form color images.

  Conventionally, a point light source device that can be used as a light source of a display device capable of full-color display is, for example, as shown in Japanese Patent No. 3298324, such as a light emitting diode (LED), R (red), G (green), and Light from each light emitting element that emits B (blue) light of the three primary colors is condensed at one point using a mirror or a lens, and used as a light source.

  However, the method using a mirror and a lens requires a means for accurately arranging and fixing the mirror and the lens with respect to each light emitting element, and the number of mounted parts increases, so the light source device is large, heavy, and expensive. There is a problem that becomes. In addition, the manufacturing requires a time-consuming alignment process to mount each component with high accuracy, which is low in productivity and unsuitable for mass production. is there.

  On the other hand, for example, Patent Document 1 described below proposes an optical multiplexer / demultiplexer that combines or demultiplexes a plurality of lights having different wavelengths using an optical waveguide and a wavelength selection filter.

  FIG. 12 is a plan view of an optical multiplexer / demultiplexer disclosed in Patent Document 1 as a conventional example. In this apparatus, an optical waveguide layer 110 is provided in the center of the silicon substrate 100, and ports 101 to 103 for entering and exiting light from the outside are provided on both sides thereof. The ports 101 to 103 are made of an optical fiber, and are positioned and bonded and fixed to a groove formed in the silicon substrate 100 by concavo-convex fitting.

  The optical waveguide layer 110 is provided with cores 111 to 113 which are light guides, and are optically connected to the ports 101 to 103, respectively. The cores 111 and 113 are disposed so as to face each other substantially linearly at the central portion of the optical waveguide layer 110, and a dielectric multilayer filter 114 is provided so as to divide both. The core 112 is provided so as to intersect with the core 113 so that the light reflected by entering the dielectric multilayer filter 114 from the core 112 proceeds to the core 113.

  When the apparatus shown in FIG. 12 is used as an optical multiplexer, incident light 121 and 122 to be combined are incident from the ports 101 and 102, respectively, and the dielectric multilayer filter 114 serves as the incident light 121. The light having the optical characteristic of reflecting the light having the wavelength of the incident light 122 is used. In this way, incident light 121 that has entered the core 111 from the port 101 and propagated through the dielectric multilayer filter 114 enters the core 113. On the other hand, the incident light 122 that has entered the core 112 from the port 102 and propagated is reflected by the dielectric multilayer filter 114, converted in direction, and incident on the core 113. As a result, both the incident lights 121 and 122 are guided to the core 113, are combined while propagating through the core 113, and are emitted from the port 103.

  If light sources such as LEDs are provided instead of the ports 101 and 102 of the apparatus shown in FIG. 12, the light emitted from each light source can be easily and accurately combined by the waveguide core, and there is no need to collimate the light. Therefore, it is expected that a point light source device that can be combined with a short optical path and is small and integrated at low cost can be manufactured.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-295540 (2nd page, FIG. 3)

  However, in the apparatus shown in FIG. 12, the light incident / exit end faces of the cores 111 to 113 are provided only on two opposite sides of the optical waveguide layer 110, so that the cores 111 to 113 always include curved portions. In this case, if the optical waveguide layer 110 is downsized to produce a compact light source device, the cores 111 to 113 inevitably include a portion with a large curvature, resulting in a large light loss due to light leakage. If the curvatures of the cores 111 to 113 are reduced in order to suppress the above, a contradictory relationship occurs in which the optical waveguide layer 110 increases in size.

  As a countermeasure, if a light incident end face is provided on two sides that are orthogonal to each other instead of two opposite sides of the optical waveguide layer, a structure that can perform multiplexing or demultiplexing without providing a curved portion in the core. It can be formed.

  FIG. 13 is a plan view of such an optical waveguide device and a light source device using the same as a comparative example of the present invention.

  In this optical waveguide device 130, for example, an optical waveguide layer 132 made of a joined body of a clad 133 and cores 134 to 136 is formed on a substrate such as silicon. The clad 133 has a rectangular ABCD shape, the core 134 is provided in a straight line from the side AB to the side CD substantially perpendicular to the side AB, and the cores 135 and 136 are substantially perpendicular to the side DA from the side DA to the core 134. It is provided in a straight line up to the intersection. Filters 137 and 138 are provided at the intersections by dividing the core 134. The filters 137 and 138 are dichroic filters made of, for example, a dielectric multilayer film, which reflect only light in a predetermined wavelength range and transmit light of other wavelengths. Filters 137 and 138 are angled relative to core 134 such that light incident from cores 135 and 136 and reflected by filters 137 and 138 travels to core 134, respectively.

  In the optical waveguide device 130, an example in which the cores 134 to 136 each include three core portions according to the embodiment of the present invention described later is shown. However, the number of cores constituting the cores 134 to 136 is described. May be single or multiple.

  In the light source device 140, the red light emitting element 21, the green light emitting element 22, and the blue light emitting element 23 are provided to face the light incident end surfaces of the cores 134, 135, and 136 of the optical waveguide device 130, respectively. The filter 137 is a filter that transmits red light but reflects green light. The filter 138 is a filter that transmits red light and green light but reflects blue light.

  The operation of the light source device 140 is as follows. The lights emitted from the red light emitting element 21, the green light emitting element 22, and the blue light emitting element 23 are respectively taken into the cores 134 to 136 from the light incident end faces facing these. The red light propagating through the core 134 passes through the filter 137 and further passes through the filter 138, and travels through the core 134 to the light emitting end surface 139. The green light propagating through the core 135 is reflected by the filter 137, converted in its path from the core 135 to the core 134, passes through the filter 138, and travels through the core 134 to the light emitting end surface 139. The blue light that has propagated through the core 136 is reflected by the filter 138, the path is changed from the core 136 to the core 134, and travels through the core 134 to the light emitting end surface 139. In this way, since red light, green light, and blue light are guided to the core 134 between the filter 138 and the light emitting end surface 139, they are combined while traveling through this region, and the combined light is combined with the light emitting end surface 139. It is emitted from.

  As described above, if the light incident end faces are provided on two mutually orthogonal sides of the optical waveguide layer, a structure capable of multiplexing can be formed without providing a curved portion in the core. FIG. 14 is a plan view for explaining a part of the manufacturing process of the optical waveguide device 130. Since the optical waveguide device 130 has a rectangular shape, an optical waveguide layer is formed as shown in FIG. A large number of optical waveguide devices 130 can be cut out from the silicon wafer 150 without waste by collective dicing, which is also advantageous from this point.

  However, in the optical waveguide device 130, the angle change when entering the filter from the cores 135 and 136 and changing the direction by reflection is 90 degrees, and the incident angle to the filter is 45 degrees. When light of one wavelength is transmitted in a narrow wavelength range and light of the other wavelength is reflected in a narrow wavelength range, such as an LED, incident light is incident at a large angle such as 45 degrees. It is known that when the light enters the filter, the polarization dependency of the reflectance and transmittance of the filter increases and the loss increases.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and the object thereof is to reduce the optical loss, reduce the size and reduce the cost, and further depend on the polarization dependency of the transmittance and the reflectance by the filter. Is divided into a narrower range of the wavelength of light to be transmitted and the wavelength of light to be reflected, and an optical waveguide device that combines or demultiplexes a plurality of lights having different wavelengths, and a small display using the same It is an object to provide a light source device and an optical information processing device suitable as a point light source device or the like.

That is, according to the present invention, the first core and the second core intersecting with the first core are joined to the clad, and the wavelength selection for dividing the first core at the intersection of these cores. In an optical waveguide device that is provided with a filter and multiplexes or demultiplexes a plurality of lights having different wavelengths,
The first core extends substantially perpendicular to one side of the clad including the light incident or emission end face of the first core, and the light emission of the first core is on the opposite side of the clad facing the one side. Or including an incident end face,
The other side of the clad including the light incident or exit end face of the second core is disposed in an orientation that forms an acute angle with the one side, and the second core is substantially perpendicular to the other side. The present invention relates to an optical waveguide device characterized in that

  A light source is disposed on each of the one side and the other side of the optical waveguide device so as to face at least the light incident end surfaces of the first core and the second core, and the light incident end surface from the light source. The light incident on the light source device is combined and is emitted from the light emitting end surface of the first core provided on the opposite side, and in the one side and the other side of the optical waveguide device The light receiving elements are arranged to face at least the light emitting end faces of the first core and the second core, respectively, and are incident from the light incident end face of the first core provided on the facing side. After the light is demultiplexed, the first light information processing device is received by the light receiving element, and moreover, the optical waveguide device and at least one side and the other side of the optical waveguide device. Light incident means for inputting signal light to the light incident end faces of the first core and the second core, and multiplexed light emitted from the light emitting end face of the first core provided on the opposite side And a light receiving means for receiving the light.

  According to the optical waveguide device of the present invention, the first core and the second core intersecting with the first core are joined to the clad, and the first core is connected to the intersection of these cores. A wavelength selection filter is provided to divide, and the first core extends substantially perpendicularly to one side of the clad including the light incidence or emission end face of the first core, and the light incidence or emission of the second core. The other side of the clad including the end face is arranged in an orientation that forms an acute angle with the one side, and the second core extends to the intersecting portion substantially perpendicular to the other side, so that the first core If there is no curved portion in the second core, the two intersect at an obtuse angle, and the angle change when light changes the course between the first core and the second core is equal to the acute angle. The incident angle when reflected by the wavelength selective filter is 4 Less than degrees. For this reason, the polarization dependency of the reflectance and transmittance of the filter can be reduced compared to the case of entering the filter at an incident angle of 45 degrees as in the comparative example described above. The loss of light that occurs when trying to transmit light of one wavelength in a narrow wavelength range and to reflect light of the other wavelength can be suppressed to a small amount, and reflected light with the wavelength of the transmitted light. It becomes possible to isolate | separate the wavelength of light in a narrower wavelength range. Further, unlike the conventional example, the optical waveguide device does not need to be provided with curved portions in the first core and the second core, and thus can be downsized without increasing optical loss. Compared with a method using a mirror or a lens, the productivity is high, and the size and weight can be reduced and the cost can be reduced.

  Further, according to the light source device of the present invention, a light source is arranged on each of the one side and the other side of the optical waveguide device so as to face at least the light incident end faces of the first core and the second core. In addition, according to the first optical information processing apparatus of the present invention, the light emission of at least the first core and the second core on the one side and the other side of the optical waveguide device. A light receiving element is arranged opposite to the end face, and light incident from the light incident end face of the first core provided on the opposite side is demultiplexed and then received by the light receiving element. According to the second optical information processing apparatus of the present invention, the light incidence of the optical waveguide device and at least the first core and the second core on the one side and the other side of the optical waveguide device. Signal on end face And the light receiving means for receiving the combined light emitted from the light emitting end face of the first core provided on the opposite side, so that the optical waveguide device has the above excellent It is possible to provide a light source device and an optical information processing device that can fully exhibit the effect.

In the optical waveguide device of the present invention, the clad has a polygonal shape including at least four sides, the first side as the one side and the third side as the opposite side are arranged substantially in parallel, The second side is arranged substantially perpendicular to one side and the third side, the fourth side as the other side is arranged in an orientation that forms an acute angle with the first side, and the first core is substantially linear. Preferably, the first side to the third side are provided, and the second core is provided substantially linearly from the fourth side to the intersection.

  The first incident light that has propagated through the first core from the light incident end face provided on the first side passes through the wavelength selective filter and proceeds forward, while the light provided on the fourth side. The second incident light that has propagated through the second core from the incident end face is reflected to the first core by the wavelength selection filter, and the first incident light and the second incident light are reflected in the first core. And is emitted from the light exit end face of the first core provided on the third side, or the light entrance end face of the first core provided on the third side The incident light that has propagated through the first core from the light passes through the wavelength selective filter and is emitted from the light exit end face of the first core provided on the first side, and the wavelength selective filter The light of the second core that is reflected by the fourth side and provided on the fourth side It is preferable is configured to be light and half wave emitted from the morphism end face.

  At this time, the first core is divided at a plurality of locations by a plurality of the wavelength selective filters arranged one after the other, and at least the second core and the third core intersecting the first core In addition, it is preferable that light is multiplexed or demultiplexed through at least the third core from the plurality of division points to the fourth side in parallel and substantially perpendicular to the fourth side.

  Alternatively, the second core is provided from the position of the wavelength selection filter that divides the first core to the fourth side, and the second wavelength selection filter is provided by dividing the second core. A fourth core intersecting with the second core is provided substantially perpendicularly to the first side in parallel with the first core from the dividing portion of the second core to the first side; The light may be multiplexed or demultiplexed also through the fourth core.

  The first core, the second core, the third core, and the fourth core may each include a plurality of core portions. Providing a plurality of core parts has an advantage that each core part can correspond to one channel to configure a multi-channel light source device or information processing apparatus.

  The polygon is a pentagon having a fifth side intersecting with the first side and the fourth side, and the first side and the third side with a perpendicular bisector of the second side as an axis of symmetry. And the fourth side and the fifth side are preferably arranged at symmetrical positions. The angle formed by the third side and the fourth side may be 135 degrees, and the angle formed by the fourth side and the fifth side may be 90 degrees.

  Further, at least the core end surfaces provided on the first side and the fourth side are formed on inclined reflection end surfaces, and the light is guided to the inside or the outside of each core through these reflection end surfaces. It is good to have.

  The first side, the second side, the third side, the fourth side, and the fifth side are formed by cutting the cores and a common clad material provided with the cores. It is better.

  In the light source device of the present invention, a light emitting diode or a laser diode may be used as the light source.

  In addition, a light source that emits blue light, green light, and red light may be used as the light source. Multi-color or full-color images can be displayed by combining light emitted from these light-emitting elements. Further, by supplying driving power to each of the light emitting elements, the plurality of mounted light emitting elements can emit light with independent light emission intensity. For example, by controlling independently the emission intensities of the red light emitting element, the green light emitting element, and the blue light emitting element, it is possible to obtain full color combined light by mixing three primary color lights.

  The second optical information processing apparatus of the present invention is preferably configured as a display on which the combined light is scanned and projected by scanning means.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following examples.

Embodiment 1
Embodiment 1 relates to an optical waveguide device having a pentagonal shape, which is an example of the optical waveguide device of the present invention, and a light source device using the optical waveguide device, and FIGS. I will explain.

  FIG. 1A is a plan view of an optical waveguide device 18 based on the first embodiment. In this optical waveguide device 18, for example, an optical waveguide layer 2 composed of a joined body of a clad 3 and cores 4 to 6 is formed on a substrate 1 (not shown) such as silicon, and a lower clad and an upper clad A core that is a light guide is embedded between the two.

  The optical waveguide layer 2 is manufactured using, for example, an acrylic organic solvent, the clad 3 has a refractive index of 1.505, and the relative refractive index difference Δn between the cores 4 to 6 and the clad 3 is 0.8%. The cross section of the cores 4 to 6 is a square of 10 μm × 10 μm. By using an organic material resin as the material of the optical waveguide, the optical waveguide manufacturing process can be simplified. For example, when a UV (ultraviolet) curable organic material is used, film formation by spin coating or core processing by photolithography is possible, and an optical waveguide device on a silicon wafer or the like with low-cost manufacturing equipment and low manufacturing cost. Can be produced in large numbers.

  The clad 3 has a pentagon ABCDE shape, and is vertically symmetric with respect to a perpendicular bisector of the side BC that is the second side, and the side AB that is the one side or the first side. The opposite side or the side CD that is the third side, the other side or the side DE that is the fourth side, and the side EA that is the fifth side are arranged at symmetrical positions with the same length. Yes. Further, the angle ABC, the angle BCD, and the angle DEA are 90 degrees, the angle CDE and the angle EAB are 135 degrees, and the side DE that is the other side is an acute angle of 45 degrees with the side AB that is the one side on the extension line. Intersect.

  The core 4 as the first core is provided in a straight line from the side AB to the side CD substantially perpendicular to the side AB, and the core 5 as the second core is from the side DE almost perpendicular to the side DE. 4 to the intersection 7 with 4 is provided in a straight line. The intersection 7 is provided with a filter 8 that is the wavelength selection filter by dividing the core 4. The filter 8 is made of a dielectric multilayer film, for example, and is a dichroic filter that reflects only light in a predetermined wavelength range and transmits light of other wavelengths. The angle of the filter 8 with respect to the core 4 and the core 5 is adjusted so that light incident from the core 5 and reflected by the filter 8 travels into the core 4.

  Further, the core 6 as the third core is provided in a straight line parallel to the core 5 from the side DE to the intersection 9 with the core 4 substantially perpendicular to the side DE. Similar to the intersection 7, the intersection 9 is provided with a filter 10 that is the wavelength selection filter by dividing the core 4. The filter 10 is a dichroic filter made of, for example, a dielectric multilayer film. In addition, the angle of the filter 10 with respect to the core 4 and the core 6 is adjusted so that light incident from the core 6 and reflected by the filter 10 travels into the core 4.

  Although FIG. 1 illustrates an example in which the cores 4 to 6 each include three core portions, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the number of cores constituting the cores 4 to 6 may be single or plural. Providing a plurality of core parts has an advantage that each core part can correspond to one channel to configure a multi-channel light source device or information processing apparatus. This is convenient when applied to a head-mounted display or the like described later in the fourth embodiment.

  The side AB is provided with the light incident or exit end face 11 of the core 4, and the side CD is provided with the light exit or incident end face 14 of the core 4. Further, the side DE is provided with the light incident or exit end face 12 of the core 5 and the light entrance or exit end face 13 of the core 6. When the optical waveguide device 18 is used as an optical multiplexing device, these light incident / exit end faces are used as the light incident end faces 11 to 13 as the light incident end faces, and the light exit or incident end faces 14 are used as the light exit end faces. Used. When the optical waveguide device 18 is used as an optical demultiplexing device, the light emitting or incident end face 14 is used as a light incident end face, and the light incident or emitting end faces 11 to 13 are used as light emitting end faces.

  The optical waveguide device 19 shown in FIG. 1B is an optical waveguide device that is symmetrical to the optical waveguide device 18 with respect to the side GH when the side GH is overlapped with the side BC of the optical waveguide device 18. It is clear that the optical waveguide device 19 has a function equivalent to that of the optical waveguide device 18.

  2 is a plan view of the light source device 20 using the optical waveguide device 18, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the light source device 20 at the position of line 2A-2A in FIG.

  In this light source device 20, a red light emitting element 21, which is an edge-emitting LED, and a green light are respectively opposed to the light incident end surface 11 of the core 4, the light incident end surface 12 of the core 5, and the light incident end surface 13 of the core 6. A light emitting element 22 and a blue light emitting element 23 are provided. The filter 8 is a filter that transmits red light but reflects green light. The filter 10 is a filter that transmits red light and green light but reflects blue light.

  The operation of the light source device 20 is as follows.

  When the driving power is supplied through the terminal electrode 25, the red light emitting element 21, the green light emitting element 22, and the blue light emitting element 23 respectively emit three primary colors of R (red), G (green), and B (blue). Emits light. The light emitted from each light emitting element is taken into the cores 4 to 6 from the light incident end surfaces 11 to 13 (see FIG. 1; not shown in FIG. 2) facing each other.

  The red light, which is the first incident light propagating through the core 4, passes through the filter 8 and further passes through the filter 10, and travels through the core 4 to the light emitting end face 14. The green light, which is the second incident light propagating through the core 5, is reflected by the filter 8, travels with the path changed from the core 5 to the core 4, passes through the filter 10, and passes through the core 4, and the light emitting end face 14. Proceed to The blue light, which is the third incident light propagating through the core 6, is reflected by the filter 10, has its path changed from the core 6 to the core 4, and travels through the core 4 to the light emitting end face 14.

  Thus, since red light, green light, and blue light are guided to the core 4 between the filter 10 and the light emitting end face 14, they are combined while traveling through this region, and the combined light is combined with the light emitting end face 14. It is emitted from.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, since the light incident end faces 11 to 13 are provided on the two sides of the optical waveguide layer that intersect at the acute angle, incident light is multiplexed without providing curved portions on the cores 4 to 6. Possible structures can be formed. Unlike the conventional example, since it is not necessary to provide curved portions in the cores 4 to 6, the optical waveguide device 18 and the light source device 20 can be downsized without increasing optical loss.

  Furthermore, since the change in angle when light changes its path from the core 5 or the core 6 to the core 4 is equal to the acute angle, 45 degrees in this example, the incident angle when the light is reflected by the filter 8 or the filter 10 is 22.5 degrees. Since this is half the incident angle of 45 degrees in the comparative example, the polarization dependency of the reflectance and transmittance of the filter can be reduced as compared with the comparative example, and the polarization is defined as in the LED. The loss of light that occurs when trying to transmit light of one wavelength in a narrow wavelength range and to reflect light of the other wavelength can be suppressed to a small amount, and reflected light with the wavelength of the transmitted light. It becomes possible to isolate | separate the wavelength of light in a narrower wavelength range.

  The light source device 20 of the present embodiment combines the three primary color lights R (red), G (green), and B (blue) emitted from the red light emitting element 21, the green light emitting element 22, and the blue light emitting element 23. It functions as a small point light source device that can be waved and emitted from the end face of the core.

  Further, the light source device 20 can independently control the emission intensity of the red light emitting element 21, the green light emitting element 22, and the blue light emitting element 23 by independently controlling the driving power supplied to each light emitting element. It is possible to obtain a full color combined light by mixing the three primary color lights. This emitted beam can be used as a point light source of a small display device capable of full-color display described later in Embodiment 4.

  FIG. 4 is a plan view for explaining a part of the manufacturing process of the optical waveguide devices 18 and 19. When the optical waveguide device 18 is formed on a silicon wafer 90 or the like, as shown in FIG. 4A, a symmetrical relationship is provided so that as many optical waveguide devices as possible can be manufactured from one wafer 90. When the triangle KFA and the triangle LDI which are notched portions are added to both of them together with the optical waveguide device 19, the rhombus KJLE is formed as a whole. Then, as shown in FIG. 4B, after patterning the optical waveguide layer so that the rhombuses are spread on the surface without gaps, dicing is performed along the scribe lines 91 to 95 to obtain the optical waveguide device 18 and the optical waveguide device. It is better to cut out 19 as individual pieces.

  As described above, the pentagonal optical waveguide device has a small area of a wasted wafer, and a large number of optical waveguide device chips 18 and 19 can be manufactured with high productivity by batch dicing. In addition, when dicing, distortion may occur at the corner, but in this embodiment, the light incident / exit end face is provided at the side where distortion is not likely to occur, so that the influence of distortion due to dicing is affected. It has a difficult structure.

  In this embodiment, the side BA and the side DE form an angle of 45 degrees, and the angle DEA is 90 degrees, so that the quadrangle KJLE is a square, but a general pentagonal optical waveguide device is The quadrilateral KJLE only needs to be a rhombus in order to cut it out by collective dicing together with a pentagonal optical waveguide device having a symmetrical relationship with it. However, A, F, I, and D must be midpoints of the sides EK, KJ, JL, and LE, respectively.

Embodiment 2
In the second embodiment, the waveguide end faces of the side AB and the side DE of the optical waveguide device 18 according to the first embodiment are processed at an angle of 45 degrees so that the light incident end faces of the cores 4 to 6 are inclined reflection end faces. This is an example of an optical waveguide device 28 that is changed so that light is guided to the inside or outside of each core through the reflection end face, and a light source device and an optical information processing device using the same.

  Thus, there is an advantage that a surface light emitting element or a surface light receiving element can be used. For example, surface-emitting LEDs are easy to manufacture, are inexpensive, have a wide variety of commercially available products, have excellent high-frequency characteristics, are easily modulated, and are easy to mount. Also, the light receiving elements such as phototransistors are mainly surface light receiving elements, and are easy to mount.

  5 is a plan view of light source device 30 based on the second embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of light source device 30 at the position of line 5A-5A in FIG. The light source device 30 is a surface-emitting type LED facing the light incident end face 15 of the core 4, the light incident end face 16 of the core 5, and the light incident end face 17 of the core 6, which are inclined at 45 degrees. A red light emitting element 31, a green light emitting element 32, and a blue light emitting element 33 are provided. As in the first embodiment, the filter 8 is a filter that transmits red light but reflects green light. The filter 10 is a filter that transmits red light and green light but reflects blue light. It has been.

  The operation of the light source device 20 is as follows.

  When the driving power is supplied through the terminal electrode 34, the red light emitting element 31, the green light emitting element 32, and the blue light emitting element 33 respectively emit three primary color lights of R (red), G (green), and B (blue). Emits light. The light emitted from each light emitting element is emitted vertically upward, the optical path is changed in the horizontal direction by the 45-degree inclined light incident end faces 14 to 16 facing these, and guided into the cores 4 to 6.

  Thereafter, as in the first embodiment, the red light propagating through the core 4 passes through the filter 8 and further passes through the filter 10, and proceeds through the core 4 to the light emitting end face 14. The green light propagating through the core 5 is reflected by the filter 8, the path is changed from the core 5 to the core 4, and the filter 10 is transmitted through the core 4 to the light emitting end face 14. The blue light propagating through the core 6 is reflected by the filter 10, the path is changed from the core 6 to the core 4, and travels through the core 4 to the light emitting end face 14.

  Thus, since red light, green light, and blue light are guided to the core 4 between the filter 10 and the light emitting end face 14, they are combined while traveling through this region, and the combined light is combined with the light emitting end face 14. It is emitted from.

  In the light source device 30 of the present embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the light incident end faces 15 to 17 of the cores 4 to 6 are provided on the two sides of the optical waveguide layer that intersect each other at the acute angle. A structure capable of multiplexing incident light can be formed without providing a portion, and the optical waveguide device 28 and the light source device 30 can be reduced in size without increasing optical loss. Further, the incident angle when the light is reflected by the filter 8 or the filter 10 is 22.5 degrees, which is half that of the comparative example. Therefore, the reflectance and transmittance of the filter are more dependent on the polarization than the comparative example. Loss of light that occurs when light of one wavelength is transmitted through a narrow wavelength range and light of the other wavelength is reflected in non-polarized light such as an LED. Therefore, the wavelength of light to be transmitted and the wavelength of light to be reflected can be separated in a narrower wavelength range.

  The light source device 30 of the present embodiment combines the three primary color lights R (red), G (green), and B (blue) emitted from the red light emitting element 31, the green light emitting element 32, and the blue light emitting element 33. It functions as a small point light source device that can be waved and emitted from the end face of the core. Further, the light source device 30 can independently control the light emission intensities of the red light emitting element 31, the green light emitting element 32, and the blue light emitting element 33 by independently controlling the driving power supplied to each light emitting element. It is possible to obtain a full color combined light by mixing the three primary color lights.

  The manufacturing process of the optical waveguide device 28 and the optical waveguide device 29 that is symmetrical to the optical waveguide device 28 is substantially the same as in the first embodiment. However, in order to form 45-degree inclined end surfaces on the waveguide end surfaces of the side AB and the side DE, dicing is performed. Needs to be changed. That is, in the present embodiment, in FIG. 4, the scribe lines 91 and 92 are cut with a normal blade as in the first embodiment, but the scribe lines 93, 94 and 95 are 45 degrees with a V-shaped blade. Cutting while forming an inclined end face. In this way, there is little wasted wafer area, and a large number of optical waveguide device chips 28 and 29 can be manufactured with high productivity by batch dicing.

  FIG. 7 is a plan view of information processing apparatus 40 based on the second embodiment. The information processing apparatus 40 is used, for example, for the purpose of demultiplexing incident light composed of red light, green light, and blue light and detecting the intensity of each. In the information processing apparatus 40, incident light is incident from the light incident end face 14 of the core 4 provided on the side CD, and the demultiplexed red light, green light, and blue light are provided in the cores 4 to 6, respectively. The light exits from the light exit end faces 15-17.

  As described above, the light emission end faces 15 to 17 are formed on the reflection end faces inclined by 45 degrees, and face each of the light emission end faces 15 to 17, respectively. A light receiving element 41, a green light receiving element 42, and a blue light receiving element 43 are provided. As in the first embodiment, the filter 8 is a filter that transmits red light but reflects green light. The filter 10 is a filter that transmits red light and green light but reflects blue light. It has been.

  The operation of the information processing apparatus 40 is as follows.

  Incident light including red light, green light, and blue light, which is incident from the light incident end face 14, propagates through the core 4 and enters the filter 10. Here, the blue light included in the incident light is reflected by the filter 10, the path is converted from the core 4 to the core 6, and travels through the core 6 to the light emitting end face 17. On the other hand, the red light and the green light pass through the filter 10 and travel through the core 4. Next, the red light and the green light that have propagated through the core 4 enter the filter 8, where the green light is reflected by the filter 8, the path is changed from the core 4 to the core 5, and the light is emitted through the core 5. Proceeding to the end face 16, the red light passes through the filter 8, and proceeds through the core 4 to the light emitting end face 15. Then, the red light, the green light, and the blue light that have reached the light emitting end faces 15 to 17 are reflected vertically downward, and the intensity is detected by the light receiving elements 41 to 43.

  In the information processing apparatus 40 according to the present embodiment, the light emitting end faces 15 to 17 of the cores 4 to 6 are provided on the two sides of the optical waveguide layer that intersect each other at the acute angle. Therefore, even if the cores 4 to 6 are not provided with curved portions. A structure capable of demultiplexing and emitting incident light can be formed, and the information processing apparatus 40 can be reduced in size without increasing optical loss. Further, the incident angle when the light is reflected by the filter 8 or the filter 10 is 22.5 degrees, which is half that of the comparative example. Therefore, the reflectance and transmittance of the filter are more dependent on the polarization than the comparative example. Loss of light that occurs when light of one wavelength is transmitted through a narrow wavelength range and light of the other wavelength is reflected in non-polarized light such as an LED. Therefore, the wavelength of light to be transmitted and the wavelength of light to be reflected can be separated in a narrower wavelength range.

Embodiment 3
The third embodiment relates to an optical waveguide device having a rectangular shape, which is an example of the optical waveguide device of the present invention, and a light source device using this optical waveguide device, and FIGS. I will explain.

  FIG. 8 is a plan view of the optical waveguide device 50 based on the third embodiment. In this optical waveguide device 50, for example, an optical waveguide layer 52 made of a joined body of a clad 53 and cores 54 to 56 is formed on a substrate 1 (not shown) such as silicon, and a lower clad and an upper clad. A core that is a light guide is embedded between the two.

  As in the first embodiment, the optical waveguide layer 2 is manufactured using, for example, an acrylic organic solvent, the clad 53 has a refractive index of 1.505, and the relative refractive index difference Δn between the cores 54 to 56 and the clad 53. Is 0.8%, and the cross section of the cores 54 to 56 is a square of 10 μm × 10 μm.

  The clad 53 has a quadrilateral ABCD shape, the side AB being the one side or the first side, the side BC being the second side, the side CD being the opposite side or the third side, and the other side. Or it consists of the side DA which is the fourth side. Further, the angle ABC and the angle BCD are 90 degrees, the angle CDA is 135 degrees, and the side DA that is the other side intersects with the side BA that is the one side at an acute angle of 45 degrees.

  The core 54, which is the first core, is provided in a straight line from the side AB to the side CD substantially perpendicular to the side AB, and the core 55, which is the second core, is a core from the side DA substantially perpendicular to the side DA. It is provided in a straight line up to the intersection 57 with 54. The intersection 57 is provided with a filter 8 that is a wavelength selective filter by dividing the core 54. As already described in the first embodiment, the filter 8 is made of, for example, a dielectric multilayer film, and is a dichroic filter that reflects only light in a predetermined wavelength range and transmits light of other wavelengths. The angle of the filter 8 with respect to the core 54 and the core 55 is adjusted so that light incident from the core 55 and reflected by the filter 8 travels into the core 54.

  Further, the core 56 as the fourth core is provided in a straight line in parallel with the core 54 from the side AB to the intersection 58 with the core 55 substantially perpendicular to the side AB. Similarly to the crossing portion 57, the crossing portion 58 is provided with a filter 10 that is a wavelength selection filter by dividing the core 55. The filter 10 is a dichroic filter made of, for example, a dielectric multilayer film. In addition, the angle of the filter 10 with respect to the core 55 and the core 56 is adjusted so that light incident from the core 56 and reflected by the filter 10 travels into the core 55.

  FIG. 8 illustrates an example in which the cores 54 to 56 each include three core portions. However, the number of cores constituting the cores 54 to 56 may be single or plural. Providing a plurality of core parts has an advantage that each core part can correspond to one channel to configure a multi-channel light source device or information processing apparatus.

  The side AB is provided with the light incident or exit end face 61 of the core 54 and the light entrance or exit end face 63 of the core 56, and the side CD is provided with the light exit or entrance end face 64 of the core 54. The side DA is provided with a light incident or exit end face 62 of the core 55. When the optical waveguide device 50 is used as an optical multiplexing device, these light incident / exit end surfaces are used as the light incident or exit end surfaces 61 to 63 as the light incident end surfaces, and the light exit or incident end surface 64 is used as the light exit end surface. Used. When the optical waveguide device 50 is used as an optical demultiplexing device, the light emitting or incident end face 64 is used as a light incident end face, and the light incident or emitting end faces 61 to 63 are used as light emitting end faces.

  FIG. 9 is a plan view of a light source device 60 using the optical waveguide device 50. In the light source device 60, the light incident end surface 61 of the core 54, the light incident end surface 62 of the core 55, and the light incident end surface 63 of the core 56 (61 to 63 are shown in FIG. 8; not shown in FIG. 9). A red light emitting element 21, a green light emitting element 22, and a blue light emitting element 23, each of which is an edge-emitting LED, are provided. A filter 8 that transmits red light but reflects green light is used, and a filter 10 that transmits red light and green light but reflects blue light is used.

  The operation of the light source device 60 is as follows.

  The red light emitting element 21, the green light emitting element 22, and the blue light emitting element 23 emit light of three primary colors of R (red), G (green), and B (blue), respectively, when driving power is supplied through the terminals. . The light emitted from each light emitting element is taken into the cores 54 to 56 from the light incident end faces 61 to 63 facing the light emitting elements, respectively.

  The red light that is the first incident light propagating through the core 54 passes through the filter 8 and further passes through the filter 10, and travels through the core 54 to the light emitting end face 64. The green light that is the second incident light propagating through the core 55 travels through the filter 10, is reflected by the filter 8, is converted in course from the core 55 to the core 54, and passes through the core 54 to the light emitting end face 64. move on. The blue light that is the third incident light propagating through the core 56 is reflected by the filter 10, the route is changed from the core 56 to the core 55, reflected again by the filter 8, and the route is changed from the core 55 to the core 54. Then, the light advances to the light emitting end face 64 through the core 54.

  Thus, since red light, green light, and blue light are guided to the core 4 between the filter 8 and the light emitting end face 64, they are combined while traveling through this region, and the combined light is combined with the light emitting end face 64. It is emitted from.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, since the light incident end faces are provided on the two sides of the optical waveguide layer that intersect at the acute angle, a structure capable of multiplexing incident light without providing curved portions in the cores 54 to 56 is provided. Can be formed. Unlike the conventional example, since it is not necessary to provide curved portions in the cores 54 to 56, the optical waveguide device 50 and the light source device 60 can be reduced in size without increasing optical loss.

  Furthermore, since the change in angle when light changes its path from the core 55 or the core 56 to the core 54 is equal to the acute angle, 45 degrees in this example, the incident angle when the light is reflected by the filter 8 or the filter 10 is 22.5 degrees. Since this is half the incident angle of 45 degrees in the comparative example, the polarization dependency of the reflectance and transmittance of the filter can be reduced as compared with the comparative example, and the polarization is defined as in the LED. The loss of light that occurs when trying to transmit light of one wavelength in a narrow wavelength range and to reflect light of the other wavelength can be suppressed to a small amount, and reflected light with the wavelength of the transmitted light. It becomes possible to isolate | separate the wavelength of light in a narrower wavelength range.

  The light source device 60 of the present embodiment combines the three primary color lights R (red), G (green) and B (blue) emitted from the red light emitting element 21, the green light emitting element 22 and the blue light emitting element 23. It functions as a small point light source device that can be waved and emitted from the end face of the core.

  Further, the light source device 60 can independently control the light emission intensities of the red light emitting element 21, the green light emitting element 22, and the blue light emitting element 23 by independently controlling the driving power supplied to each light emitting element. It is possible to obtain a full color combined light by mixing the three primary color lights. This emitted beam can be used as a point light source of a small display device capable of full-color display described later in Embodiment 4.

  FIG. 10 is a plan view for explaining a part of the manufacturing process of the optical waveguide device 50. When the optical waveguide device 50 is formed on the silicon wafer 90 or the like, as shown in FIG. 10 (a), another optical waveguide device can be manufactured so that as many optical waveguide devices as possible can be manufactured from the single wafer 90. In combination with the waveguide device 50, AB = 2CD is formed so that when the triangle AD′C ′ and the triangle CA′D which are notches are added to the waveguide device 50, the rectangle ABA′B ′ is formed as a whole. Then, it is preferable to pattern the optical waveguide layer so that the rectangles are laid on the surface without any gaps, cut along the scribe lines 96 to 99 by dicing, and cut out the optical waveguide device 50 as individual pieces.

  In the present embodiment, since the angle ABC and the angle BCD are 90 degrees, the quadrilateral ABA'B 'is rectangular. Even if the angle ABC and the angle BCD are angles other than a right angle, there is no change in the function as the optical waveguide device. Therefore, in general, the quadrilateral ABA'B 'may be a parallelogram. In this case as well, AB = 2CD is necessary to cut out by batch dicing. Such a rectangular optical waveguide device has a small area of a wasted wafer, and a large number of optical waveguide device chips 50 can be manufactured with high productivity by batch dicing.

  As in the second embodiment, when the incident end surfaces 61 to 63 are to be inclined end surfaces, the scribe lines 96 and 97 are cut with a normal blade, and the scribe lines 98 and 99 are cut with a V-shaped blade. do it.

Embodiment 4
The combined light emitted from the light source devices of Embodiments 1 to 3 described above is light that can be used as a point light source. This embodiment is an example in which such a light source device is applied to a small display such as a retina display.

  FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a head mounted display (HMD) based on the fourth embodiment of the present invention. In the head mounted display 70, the emitted light 71 emitted from the light source device 30 shown in FIG. 5 forms unit pixels on the retina 75. At this time, by controlling the driving power supplied to each light emitting element corresponding to the video signal, the emission intensity of the red light emitting element 21, the green light emitting element 22 and the blue light emitting element 23 is adjusted, and the three primary color light A unit pixel capable of full color display by mixing colors can be obtained.

  The emitted light 71 from the light source device 30 forms an image on a scanned image plane 73 that is a scanning means by a lens 72 or the like, and after passing through the scanning plate 73, the lens 74 or the like of the projection optical system. Thus, an imaging point (spot) is formed on the retina 76 of the user's eyeball 75 that is optically conjugate with the scanning plate 73. This image formation point is scanned two-dimensionally on the retina 76 by the movement of the scanning plate 73 synchronized with the video signal, and a raster image is formed on the retina 76. The user can perceive the raster image and personally experience a realistic video.

  The head mounted display 70 can be provided in a compact video device by being incorporated in a projector, a PDA (personal digital assistant), a camera, a computer, a game machine, or the like while wearing like sunglasses.

  As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated based on embodiment, it cannot be overemphasized that this invention is not limited to these examples at all, and can be suitably changed in the range which does not deviate from the main point of invention.

  For example, although only an example using a linear core is shown, the present invention is not limited to this, and a curved portion may be appropriately provided in the core as necessary. Further, as a method for forming the waveguide layer, a method of dividing into individual pieces by collective dicing has been shown. However, individual pieces may be formed by patterning by a photo process or by stamping.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The light source device and the display device of the present invention can be applied to providing a display device capable of color display such as a retinal display device that is expected as a display device of a portable electronic device in a small size, a light weight, and a low cost. .

It is a top view of the optical waveguide device based on Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the light source device. It is sectional drawing of a light source device equally. It is a top view explaining a part of manufacturing process of an optical waveguide device equally. It is a top view of the light source device based on Embodiment 2 of this invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the light source device. It is sectional drawing of a light source device equally. It is a top view of the optical waveguide device based on Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a top view of the optical waveguide device based on Embodiment 4 of this invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the light source device. It is a top view explaining a part of manufacturing process of an optical waveguide device equally. 10 is a plan view showing a structure of an optical multiplexer / demultiplexer shown as a conventional example in Patent Document 1. FIG. It is a top view of the optical waveguide device of a comparative example. It is a top view explaining a part of manufacturing process of an optical waveguide device equally.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Substrate of silicon etc. 2 ... Optical waveguide layer 3 ... Cladding,
4a-4c, 5a-5c, 6a-6c ... core, 7, 9 ... intersection, 8,10 ... filter,
11-13 ... Light incident or exit end face, 14 ... Light exit or entrance end face,
15-17: Light emission or incident end face inclined at 45 degrees, 18, 19: Optical waveguide device,
20 ... Light source device, 21a-21c ... End-emitting red light emitting element,
22a to 22c ... green light emitting elements of edge-emitting type,
23a to 23c ... blue light emitting element of edge emitting type, 24 ... light emitting region, 25 ... terminal electrode,
28 ... Optical waveguide device, 30 ... Light source device, 31a to 31c ... Surface emitting red light emitting element,
32a to 32c ... green light emitting element of surface emitting type,
33a to 33c ... surface emitting blue light emitting element, 34 ... terminal electrode, 40 ... optical information processing device,
41a-41c ... red light receiving element, 42a-42c ... green light receiving element,
43a to 43c ... blue light receiving element, 50 ... optical waveguide device,
54a-54c, 55a-55c, 56a-56c ... Core, 57, 58 ... Intersection,
61-63 ... Light incident or exit end face, 70 ... Head mounted display, 71 ... Emitted light,
73: Scanned image plane, 74 ... Lens of projection optical system,
75 ... User's eyeball, 76 ... Retina, 90 ... Silicon wafer,
91-99 ... scribe line, 100 ... silicon substrate, 101-103 ... port,
110 ... Optical waveguide layer, 111-113 ... Core, 114 ... Dielectric multilayer filter,
121, 122 ... incident light, 123 ... outgoing light, 130 ... optical waveguide device,
132: optical waveguide layer, 133: cladding, 134 to 136: core,
137, 138 ... filter, 139 ... light emitting end face, 140 ... light source device,
151, 152 ... scribe line

Claims (16)

A first core and a second core that intersects with the first core are joined to the clad, and a wavelength selective filter that divides the first core is provided at the intersection of these cores, In an optical waveguide device that multiplexes or demultiplexes a plurality of different lights,
The first core extends substantially perpendicular to one side of the clad including the light incident or emission end face of the first core, and the light emission of the first core is on the opposite side of the clad facing the one side. Or including an incident end face,
The other side of the clad including the light incident or emission end face of the second core is arranged in an orientation that forms an acute angle with the one side, and the second core is substantially perpendicular to the other side. An optical waveguide device, characterized in that The cladding has a polygonal shape of at least four sides;
The first side as the one side and the third side as the opposite side are arranged substantially in parallel, the second side is arranged substantially perpendicular to the first side and the third side, and the other side as the other side The fourth side is arranged in an orientation that forms an acute angle with the first side,
The first core is provided substantially linearly from the first side to the third side,
The second core is provided substantially linearly from the fourth side to the intersection.
The optical waveguide device according to claim 1.   The first incident light that has propagated through the first core from the light incident end face provided on the first side passes through the wavelength selective filter and proceeds forward, while the light provided on the fourth side. Second incident light that has propagated through the second core from the incident end face is reflected to the first core by the wavelength selective filter, and the first incident light and the second incident light are reflected by the first core. Combined and configured to be emitted from the light exit end face of the first core provided on the third side, or from the light entrance end face of the first core provided on the third side Incident light that has propagated through the first core passes through the wavelength selective filter and is emitted from the light exit end face of the first core provided on the first side, and by the wavelength selective filter. The light output of the second core reflected and provided on the fourth side It is configured to be light being the demultiplexed emitted from the end surface, the optical waveguide device according to claim 2.   The first core is divided at a plurality of locations by a plurality of the wavelength selective filters arranged one after the other, and at least the second core and the third core intersecting with the first core are the plurality 3. The light guide according to claim 2, wherein the light is multiplexed or demultiplexed through at least the third core, in parallel with the fourth side from the divided portion to the fourth side. Waveguide device.   The second core is provided from the position of the wavelength selection filter that divides the first core to the fourth side, and a second wavelength selection filter is provided by dividing the second core, A fourth core intersecting with the second core is provided substantially perpendicularly to the first side in parallel with the first core from the dividing point of the second core to the first side, and at least the first side The optical waveguide device according to claim 2, wherein light is multiplexed or demultiplexed via the core of 4.   The optical waveguide device according to claim 4, wherein each of the first core, the second core, the third core, and the fourth core includes a plurality of core portions.   The polygon is a pentagon having a fifth side intersecting with the first side and the fourth side, and the first side and the third side with the perpendicular bisector of the second side as a symmetry axis, and The optical waveguide device according to claim 2, wherein the fourth side and the fifth side are arranged at symmetrical positions.   The optical waveguide device according to claim 7, wherein an angle formed by the third side and the fourth side is 135 degrees, and an angle formed by the fourth side and the fifth side is 90 degrees.   Each core end surface provided on at least the first side and the fourth side is formed on an inclined reflection end surface, and is configured to guide light to the inside or the outside of each core through these reflection end surfaces. The optical waveguide device according to claim 2.   The first side, the second side, the third side, the fourth side, and the fifth side are formed by cutting the cores and a common clad material provided with the cores. The optical waveguide device according to claim 2 or 7.   11. The light source device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the first and second cores faces the light incident end surface of the one side and the other side of the optical waveguide device according to claim 1. A light source device that is arranged, and the light incident on the light incident end face from the light source is combined and emitted from the light exit end face of the first core provided on the opposite side.   The light source device according to claim 11, wherein a light emitting diode or a laser diode is used as the light source.   The light source device according to claim 11, wherein a light source that emits blue light, green light, and red light is used as the light source.   A light receiving element is disposed on the one side and the other side of the optical waveguide device according to any one of claims 1 to 10 so as to face at least the light emitting end faces of the first core and the second core. An optical information processing apparatus, in which light is incident on each of the light incident end surfaces of the first core provided on the opposite side and is received by the light receiving element after being demultiplexed.   The optical waveguide device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, and a signal on at least one of the first core and the second core on the light incident end surface of the one side and the other side of the optical waveguide device. An optical information processing apparatus, comprising: a light incident means for entering light; and a light receiving means for receiving the combined light emitted from the light emission end face of the first core provided on the opposite side.   The optical information processing apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the optical information processing apparatus is configured as a display on which the combined light is scanned and projected by a scanning unit.

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