title: An optical fiber-taper probe for wafer-scale microphotonic device characterization.
abstract: A small depression is created in a straight optical fiber taper to form a local probe suitable for studying closely spaced, planar microphotonic devices. The tension of the "dimpled" taper controls the probe-sample interaction length and the level of noise present during coupling measurements. Practical demonstrations with high-Q silicon microcavities include testing a dense array of undercut microdisks (maximum Q = 3.3 x 10(6)) and a planar microring (Q = 4.8 x 10(6)).
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA. cmichael@caltech.edu
authors.forename: C P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Michael
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Borselli
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chrystal
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Painter