NT22: Optical Switch Using 2-D Photonic Crystal Waveguides

The main goal of this project is to design, fabricate, and test an optical switch using photonic crystal waveguides (PCWs) integrated with a MEMS actuator. A single mechanical assembly aligns a central waveguide array to select between lightwave paths connecting an input waveguide and multiple output waveguides. This project will limit its investigation to two-dimensional photonic crystal waveguides, which rely on total internal reflection for optical confinement in the vertical axis, and the photonic band gap for confinement in the lateral axis.

Project end date: 02/06/04