Optical switching based on high-speed phased array optical beam steering

We present a high-speed optical switching scheme based on phased array optical beam steering, and analyze the trade-off between the switch power efficiency, signal-to-noise-ratio, number of output channels, and switching speed. For the proof of concept, a two-channel optical switch has been fabricated, using a high-speed GaAs/AlGaAs multiple quantum well phase modulator. We demonstrate a beam deflection angle of 100 mrad at the fastest ever reported speed of 18 GHz, consuming 1.8 mW. A signal-to-noise ratio of 8 dB is measured at each output channel. The relatively low signal-to-noise ratio can be further improved by increasing the number of phased arrays. (c) 2008 American Institute of Physics.