Theoretical and experimental investigation of an active three-branch Ti:LiNbO(3) optical waveguide switch.

A theoretical and experimental investigation of an active three-branch multimoded Ti:LiNbO(3) waveguide switch is presented. The theoretical study covers the efficiency of the electrooptic index change in a multimoded waveguide, the mode conversion occurring in a tapered transition and, finally, the power division among the branches of the switch. For the experimental characterization, the optical measurements of a device fabricated in a Z-cut LiNbO(3) crystal are presented and discussed. Several improvements as well as applications are pointed out.