ARROW-B TYPE POLARIZATION SPLITTER WITH ASYMMETRIC Y-BRANCH FABRICATED BY A SELF-ALIGNMENT PROCESS

We have proposed and demonstrated a polarization splitter based on an ARROW-B type waveguide, This device has an asymmetric Y-branch configu ration, connecting a waveguide with a large modal birefringence to a l ow-birefringent waveguide which is channeled by the stripe lateral con finement structure, The device can achieve a high extinction ratio wit hout precise mask alignment, since these two waveguides are connected by self-alignment process, In addition, a low insertion loss is achiev ed because of adiabatic Y-branching, We designed this device at the wa velength of 1.55 mu m and fabricated using an RF sputtering, As the re sult, high extinction ratios of -19.4 dB for TE mode and -19.0 dB for TM mode were achieved.