Semiconductor laser diode to single-mode fiber coupling using diffractive optical elements

Abstract An integrated mode converter consisting of two diffractive optical elements (DOEs) and a Silicon slab is presented for low-loss coupling between a semiconductor laser diode (LD) and a single-mode fiber (SMF). The phase structures of the DOEs are designed using iterative phase retrieval algorithm. We introduce a new far-field amplitude constraint into the iteration to provide very high mode conversion quality. Compared with previously published mode converters, the scheme is more universal because it’s applicable for any semiconductor LD. In simulation, coupling losses lower than 0.02 dB are predicted for all the discussed LDs with aspect ratios of the elliptical fields from 1 to 9. The requirements on axial displacement and rotation angle have been removed. The tolerance for 1-dB loss increment for lateral misalignment is 0.9 μm. And the coupling loss is insensitive to tilt angle.