4*4 polymer thermo-optic directional coupler switch at 1.55 mu m

An integrated 4*4 polymer thermo-optic switch at 1.55 mu m is demonstrated for the first time. A fibre to fibre insertion loss of 10 dB, and extinction ratios of 17.5-19.5 dB were measured. The polarisation sensitivity was typically less then 0.5 dB and the response time was less then 1 ms. The electrical power consumption was found to be 70 mW per single switch.