A wide range linearly-tunable optical filter using magnetic actuation

In this paper, we have proposed and demonstrated a widely tunable optical filter using magnetic actuation. We have fabricated and tested three types of spring structures: straight bar, corrugation, and meander types. We have achieved linear displacement over 1 /spl mu/m due to bi-directional nature of magnetic actuation. From this, we have acquired a wide linear tuning range over 200 nm in wavelength which is the widest ever reported. The fabricated tunable filter consumes a maximum static power less than 25 /spl mu/W with an external magnetic field of 0.28T.