US 12,169,301 B2
SMF to MMF coupler
Jose M. Castro, Naperville, IL (US); Yu Huang, Orland Park, IL (US); Bulent Kose, Burr Ridge, IL (US); Richard J. Pimpinella, Prairieville, LA (US); and Asher S. Novick, New York, NY (US)
Assigned to Panduit Corp., Tinley Park, IL (US)
Filed by Panduit Corp., Tinley Park, IL (US)
Filed on Oct. 23, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/382,775.
Application 18/382,775 is a continuation of application No. 17/270,736, granted, now 11,835,754, previously published as PCT/US2019/049496, filed on Sep. 4, 2019.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/726,636, filed on Sep. 4, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2024/0053533 A1, Feb. 15, 2024
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. G02B 6/02 (2006.01); G02B 27/00 (2006.01)
CPC G02B 6/02328 (2013.01) [G02B 27/0012 (2013.01)] 6 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of splicing a coupler between fibers, the method comprising:
providing a multi-mode fiber (MMF) configured to include a first core diameter;
providing a single mode fiber (SMF) configured to include a second core diameter, the second core diameter being less than the first core diameter;
providing a photonic crystal fiber (PCF) coupler with a hollow core, the PCF coupler configured to include a mode field diameter (MFD) in a range of 16 to 19 microns which is a diameter size between the first core diameter and the second core diameter; and
splicing the PCF coupler between the SMF and the MMF;
wherein a splice coupling between the PCF coupler and the SMF is tapered to avoid signal losses at a transition between the PCF coupler and the SMF;
wherein a splice coupling between the PCF coupler and the MMF is actively aligned to minimize misalignment at a transition between the PCF coupler and the MMF;
wherein the splice coupling between the PCF coupler and the MMF is actively aligned by maximizing an overlap integral of a fundamental mode of the PCF coupler with a fundamental mode of the MMF while also minimizing power transmissions in non-fundamental modes within the MMF.