Efficient, Easy-to-Use, Planar Fiber-to-Chip Coupling Process with Angle-Polished Fibers

Abstract

We present an efficient and easy-to-use process for a permanent fiber-to-chip coupling arrangement with angle-polished single-mode optical fibers (SMF) to maintain a planar profile while surface-coupling to grating couplers of a silicon photonic integrated circuit (PIC). The SMF are polished with a standard polishing machine to match the appropriate coupling angle. Due to the simplicity of the process, it is suitable for both packaging of photonic devices ready for commercialization and the rapid coupling of components at an early stage of development. The coupling arrangement does not impose additional insertion loss compared to a continuously controlled fiber alignment and remains stable even under strong variation of ambient temperature and humidity.