An Opto-VLSI-based reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer employing an off-axis 4-f imaging system

A novel reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM) structure is proposed and demonstrated experimentally. The ROADM structure employs two arrayed waveguide gratings (AWGs), an array of optical fiber pairs, an array of 4-f imaging microlenses that are offset in relation to the axis of symmetry of the fiber pairs, and a reconfigurable Opto-VLSI processor that switches various wavelength channels between the fiber pairs to achieve add or drop multiplexing. Experimental results are shown, which demonstrate the principle of add/drop multiplexing with crosstalk of less than -27dB and insertion loss of less than 8dB over the C-band for drop and through operation modes. (C) 2009 Optical Society of America