Self-Configuring Silicon-Photonic Receiver for Multimode Free Space Channels

A self-configuring mesh of silicon Mach-Zehnder Interferometers is employed to receive two spatially overlapped orthogonal beams modulated at 10 Gbit/s. These beams, sharing the same wavelength and state of polarization, are separated with more than 30 dB isolation, and sorted out with no signal degradation.