Device and circuit development for optical phased arrays

In order to produce a powerful, single and low divergence output beam for 3D sensing applications, integrated Optical Phased Arrays (OPA) must have a large number of closely spaced optical antennas. This high density leads to specific constraints in component design compared to devices for optical transceivers. Furthermore, OPA characterization requires significant adaptations compared to traditional photonic wafer level measurement systems. In this presentation, we will focus on some key components used in a large scale OPAs, describing specific challenges and solutions. We will show characterization results of single components as well as active beam-steering with OPA circuits using our modified wafer-scale prober setup.