Abstract
Fiber couplers made of two well-mated, side-polished fibers are presented. Fabricating side-polished fibers using a silicon wafer as the polishing substrate, we achieve samples of excellent flatness capable of realizing optical contact while mated as couplers. We also achieve high sensitivity and high-speed throughput. In this thesis, we successfully demonstrate the alignment for two half-couplers using a silicon processing technique, which was a formidable task in polished couplers before. Brief reviews and comparisons with fused couplers are provided. Main advantages of these polished couplers are low insertion losses, a long interaction length, tunable, and their versatility. Impacts of this technology are also discussed in this thesis.