Products - PI (Physik Instrumente) L.P.
Fast Alignment System for Automating Test & Production of Fiber Optics, Photonics and Silicon Photonics Circuits
A new compact automated multi-axis alignment stage with controller, powerful algorithms, and software was introduced by PI at the recent Photonics West and OFC (Optical Fiber Communication) conferences in California. This novel, ultra-compact 3-DOF stage is based on friction-free air bearings and linear motors, to provide extremely fast automated alignment of fibers and wave guides.
Key Features
- Super clean – unlike conventional CMOS chips, test and packaging of photonic chips is sensitive to contamination, so applications like production probing and package assembly can demand fab-level cleanliness to preserve yield.
- Multi-DOF, multi I/O simultaneous alignment – PI’s Fast Multichannel Photonic Alignment technology (FMPA) eliminates time-consuming loops required by legacy alignment algorithms, providing 100X faster overall alignment.
- No maintenance, no lubricants, no wear for highest MTBF and uptime.
Multi-Axis Stage, Controller and Software – Ideal for Silicon Photonics Applications
The F-142 fiber-optic alignment system is based on three A-142 air bearing stage modules. The friction-free, multi-axis nanopositioning stage features smooth, continuous motion and its closed-loop controller provides nanometer resolution, and long-term stability, ideal prerequisites for coupling light into waveguides, fibers, and modern silicon photonics devices. For extended travel ranges, the F-143 fiber-optic alignment stage is available.
Wear-Free Air Bearings and Linear Motors – Ideal for Clean Room Environments
Designed for high-throughput 24/7 test and production applications, the alignment system features zero-wear air bearings and non-contact linear motors and optical encoders. Air bearings have no wearing parts such as conventional ball bearings or crossed-roller bearings and also require no lubricants. In addition to the virtually infinite life of the air bearing / linear motor approach, the alignment system is also ideal for clean-room environments, due to its lack of particle generation.
Ultra-Fast Scan and Align Algorithms
The ACS-based motion and alignment controller features embedded ultra-fast scan and alignment routines, including serpentine and circular scans and a fast hill-climb gradient search. The fast scans determine the first light and make sure the gradient search does not lock onto a spurious optical maximum. This advanced technology enables the alignment system to handle a wide range of profiles, including gaussian and top-hat profiles.
This comprehensive package also includes a powerful, easy-to-use tool for configuring, tuning, programming, and characterizing motion performance, called MMI Application Studio.
Comprehensive User-Friendly Software Packages Save Time During Integration
Time to market is significantly reduced by taking advantage of ACS host application libraries for popular platforms including C/C++, COM, .NET, Python, MATLAB, Linux, and low-level socket communication. A Motion Simulator accelerates development with controller level onboard routine programming as well as host level interfacing, all in advance of hardware delivery.
PI also offers open-source graphical applications examples in major languages, such as LabVIEW, Python, C#, and Visual Basic.
6-DOF Alignment Engines
For applications that require 6-DOF alignment, a six-axis air bearing alignment engine with controller and software is also offered.
Why Photonics Matters
Photonics is a critical technology because it enables the control and manipulation of light in various applications such as telecommunications, information processing, medical diagnostics, industrial manufacturing, and environmental sensing. By using light instead of electricity to transmit information and perform various tasks, photonics technology offers numerous advantages such as higher speed, greater bandwidth, and lower energy consumption. Photonics also enables the creation of ultra-precise instruments and devices that can detect and analyze extremely small or faint signals. As a result, photonics has become an essential technology in many industries and is driving innovation and progress in fields ranging from healthcare and energy to transportation and communication.
Air Bearing Stages: Applications, Articles, Background Information
