With the trend towards miniaturization, many technical applications require high-quality microoptics which are precisely placed and aligned, such as for miniaturized optical sensors, optical interconnection technology in integrated photonics or for applications in optical computing and quantum technology. To manufacture microstructures directly on optical fibers or photonic chips by 3D printing, placement and alignment with nanoprecision is required. With the recently introduced 3D printer Quantum X align and the Aligned 2-Photon Lithography technology, Nanoscribe, a KIT spin-off, now makes this high-precision manufacturing technology market-ready.
To fabricate efficient optical interconnects for photonic integration or miniaturized optics, freeform microoptics can be printed directly onto optical fibers or photonic chips. This is made possible by Aligned 2-Photon Lithography (A2PL®), a microfabrication solution from Nanoscribe for high-resolution 3D printing with nanoprecise 3D alignment. The company was founded in 2007 as a KIT spin-off. Quantum X align, the new A2PL-equipped 3D printer can detect the exact position of defined substrates such as waveguides, fiber cores and their orientation on facets of optical fibers or on photonic chips, optimally place the microoptics to be printed, and automatically compensate for even minimal substrate tilts in the printing process. "Quantum X align benefits from a variety of innovations that open up entirely new fields of application for high-precision 3D printing," says Johannes Lang, responsible for Marketing and Communications at Nanoscribe. "A key component is the recognition of structures such as markers or reference points, or even waveguides relative to which microoptical structures are then additively manufactured. This is more demanding than you might imagine and requires a well-tuned system of special hardware and software," Lang continues.
Quantum X align is the latest 3D printer from Nanoscribe, equipped with Aligned 2-Photon Lithography A2PL ® for manufacturing on optical fibers and photonic chips with nanoprecise alignment. (Image: Nanoscribe)
Interconnection with Free Space Microoptical Coupling
The precise alignment of 3D-printed objects is crucial in many cases. "Especially for optical interconnects in photonic systems, minimally misplaced or tilted microoptics cause major drawbacks. The coupling of light, for example from an optical fiber into a photonic chip, then is less efficient, sometimes with such high coupling losses that it no longer makes sense for optical data processing," adds Lang. Quantum X align is a promising, application-ready approach in optical interconnect technology for photonics packaging: high-precision microoptics focus or collimate the outgoing light beam from optical fibers or photonic chips onto the facet of adjacent optoelectronic components, enabling light coupling with distances ranging from micrometers to a few millimeters. This enables Free Space Microoptical Coupling (FSMOC), a promising concept for optical interconnection of different photonic components. FSMOC ensures robust and efficient light coupling of optoelectronic components and modules, as required in photonic integrated circuits (PICs). 3D-printed microoptics have several advantages over conventional lenticular or tapered fibers in this regard. Freeform microoptics such as prism, aspherical and asymmetrical designs can be manufactured with complete control of the design parameters to tailor the beam profile to almost any coupling task.
Scientific ecosystem and innovation platform
Nanoscribe, now a company with more than 100 employees in Karlsruhe, Shanghai and Boston, was founded in 2007 with decisive contribution of Prof. Dr. Martin Wegener, Institute for Applied Physics (APH) and Institute of Nanotechnology (INT) at KIT. Despite its independence, the company continues to maintain close ties to KIT, which Johannes Lang is very pleased about: "KIT offers a strong scientific ecosystem and is an important innovation platform. Through joint research projects and technology licensing, this has also paid off for the Aligned 2-Photon Lithography technology and thus for the new Quantum X align. In addition, we appreciate the access to highly qualified personnel directly on site. We are also very happy to work here in the ZEISS Innovation Hub at KIT's Campus North, in an open, innovation-friendly atmosphere that supports the exchange of ideas very nicely."
The company is on track for success with the new product, and demand from research and industry is remarkably strong. In addition, Quantum X align 2022 was the only 3D printer to be recognized as a finalist in the SPIE Prism Awards in the "Manufacturing & Test" category.
A 3D printed lensed fiber array (LFA) is shown. Nanoscribe Quantum X align enables outstandingly precise yet robust optical interconnects by printing high-precision microoptics directly and with nanoprecision alignment on fiber arrays and photonic integrated circuits (PICs). (Image: PHIX Photonics Assembly)
Photonics packaging refers to the multiple technologies used to assemble optoelectronical elements in a single package as a system, This is used e.g. for optical signal processing, in particular between different optoelectronic components and modules for photonic integrated circuits (PICs), as increasingly required for medical sensor technology, LiDAR systems or optical computing. Due to the high positioning accuracies required, it is a critical step for integrating individual components into functional optoelectronic systems. There are a variety of technical approaches such as flip-chip bonding, butt coupling, photonic-wire bonding, soldering and bonding techniques, etc. What they all have in common is the effort required to achieve accurate, low-loss and robust optical interconnection. In the context, Free Space Microoptical Coupling (FSMOC) is a very promising approach where freeform microoptics are printed directly on the optical interface of chips or fibers to enable tailored beam shaping and mode field matching. Alignment can be performed directly with the aligned optical interconnect printing, eliminating the need for subsequent active alignment. FSMOC is flexible in application and can be easily tailored to specific requirements.
Images
Optical microscopy shows how precise the beam guidance is, achieved by the 3D-printed microlenses of an 8-fiber array. Here, green light is collimated into parallel light beams. Example from the BMBF-funded research project MiLiQuant, manufactured with Nanoscribe Quantum X align. (Image: Nanoscribe)
Quantum X align is the latest 3D printer from Nanoscribe, equipped with Aligned 2-Photon Lithography A2PL ® for manufacturing on optical fibers and photonic chips with nanoprecise alignment. (Image: Nanoscribe)
A 3D printed lensed fiber array (LFA) is shown. Nanoscribe Quantum X align enables outstandingly precise yet robust optical interconnects by printing high-precision microoptics directly and with nanoprecision alignment on fiber arrays and photonic integrated circuits (PICs). (Image: PHIX Photonics Assembly)
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