On the foundation of joint experience acquired by several research centres there was defined the roadmap to the desired single technological platform for fabrication of a specific class of photonic integrated circuits, which are controlled by mechanical means. In the paper the challenges of fabrication of such photonic circuits are discussed. The main arguments in favour of the Silicon-on-Insulator materials system as the basis for the platform are presented. Options for the mechanics-to-optics arrangement, materials and processes are described and illustrated with the current achievements from the authors' labs. In the roadmap the preference is given to the vertical arrangement in which, the mechanical part is stacked above the waveguiding layer. A flexible trimming routine is designed to complement the process flow if the technologies developed cannot provide the required reproducibility.
Most approaches to perform switching and tuning in photonic integrated circuits (PICs) are based on modulation of effective refractive index of a waveguide or a resonant structure and use a variety of means by which the desired perturbation of index is to be achieved. Limitations to these methods, which obstacle achievement of the desired results, are discussed. It is shown that the promising alternative, at least for applications, for which speed is not a critical issue, can be to control light by means of nano/micromechanic actuation. The general idea is presented and the applicability of mechanical actuation to very-large-scale integration (VLSI) photonics is assessed. Particular concepts of switching and tuning are described.
The paper presents an idea of a reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM) based on micro/nanomechanically switched micro-ring resonators. Main issues related to the design and fabrication of mechanically controlled ROADM are discussed.
Properties of SS-WDMA and FE-CDMA data communication networks were considered. Networks of both types were compared with respect to attainable throughput and size as well as data channel characteristics. Practical limitations to applications of SS-WDMA and FE-CDMA are discussed.
Transmission of information from the measurand to the evaluation unit is treated as occurring of a number of discrete spectral channels. Decoding is performed by channel selection and by channel interpolation. The maximum attainable resolution is determined from the power budget of the sensor, distinguishing between scanning and tracking operation and systems with array detection. Finally, immunity to variation of fiber-optic link losses is discussed.
Self referenced and absorption modulation methods for detecting gas pollutants were described. Applicability of both methods was tested experimentally.
Some problems of applications of the fiber optic networks for mining seismology are presented. A structure of the network multiplexing and modulation techniques transmission quality and design aspects are discussed with respect to mining environmental conditions typical topologies and mining technical standards. Emphasis is laid on compliance with requirements of safe operation in mining environment. An example network is presented. The network has been given official approval for inmine practice. It serves for monitoring crump hazard in one of coal mines in Poland.
The paper discusses technical feasibility of using fiber optics technology for underground mine communication systems. The emphasis has been placed on sensor dedicated systems for methane monitoring, fire detection, and vibration sensing. Communication system included video, voice and data transmission has been proposed. The test procedure and requirements for the fiber optics network in the adverse coal mining are given. The network has been developed and evaluated in a number of underground mine applications. The long term environmental trials and laboratory examinations have resulted in approval fiber optic network for in-mine use.
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