From waferprobing to chip testing and packaging, aligning photonic structures such as waveguides, VCSELs, or photo diodes with fiber arrays or single fibers is probably the most frequently repeated process step in the fabrication of photonic integrated circuits (PICs). PI´s unique gradient search technology, enables researchers as well as manufacturers to perform this task in practically no-time. Based on micron- or even nanometer-scale exploratory motions of the alignment system, the algorithm measures the local gradient of a figure-of-merit. This gradient is then automatically followed until the desired position and orientation of the elements is reached. The routine also allows excellent tracking in order to compensate for drift effects.

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