DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shevy US 20070153840.
Regarding claim 1, Shevy teaches a standing wave optical resonator configured to generate an optical frequency comb, the standing wave optical resonator comprising: a first mirror (FM) (111 fiber grating reflector) comprising a first FM port configured to transmit a portion of the optical frequency comb, and a second FM port ( fiber connecting point 112); a Bragg grating (BG) (intracavity filter 160 [0032])comprising a first BG port (fiber connecting point 112) and a second BG port (fiber connecting point 122), wherein the first BG port is optically coupled to the second FM port, and wherein the Bragg grating is configured to alternately shift, lower and higher in wavelength, resonances of the standing wave optical resonator in a stop bandwidth of the Bragg grating ([0032]-[0033] The filter 160 may include two fiber Bragg grating reflectors 161 and 162 to reflect light at the laser wavelength at a band slightly larger than the bandwidth of the reflection bandwidth of 111 and 121 and transmit light at the laser mode frequency) ; and a second mirror (SM) (fiber grating reflector 121) comprising a first SM port (fiber connecting point 122) optically coupled to the second BG port.
Regarding claim 2, Shevy teaches the standing wave optical resonator of claim 1, wherein a reflectivity of the first SM port is greater than a reflectivity of the second FM port ( pump receiving reflector 111 may be partially transmissive and reflector 121 may be completely reflective [0028]).
Regarding claim 3, Shevy teaches the standing wave optical resonator of claim 1, wherein the first FM port is configured to receive an optical pump signal (fig. 1 101) having a carrier wavelength in the stop bandwidth and which is closer to a resonance shifted higher in wavelength than to an adjacent resonance shifted lower in wavelength [0037].
Regarding claim 4, the limitation of wherein an amount of wavelength that the resonance shifted higher in wavelength is shifted higher equals an amount of wavelength that the resonance shifted in higher in wavelength is shifted lower in wavelength due to a Kerr effect does not appear to impart any structural limitation not taught by Shevy as the Kerr effect should apply in this situation. If there is additional structure not taught by Shevy this is not evident.
Regarding claim 5, Shevy teaches standing wave optical resonator of claim 1, wherein the first FM port is further configured to receive an optical pump signal having a power level greater than a threshold power level, necessary to generate the optical frequency comb in the standing wave optical resonator, that is less than another threshold power level necessary to generate the optical frequency comb in a travelling wave optical resonator comprising the Bragg grating ([0037]).
Regarding claim 6, Shevy teaches the standing wave optical resonator of claim 1, wherein each of the first mirror and the second mirror comprises an optical loop mirror or a plane mirror ([0028] 111 first mirror is formed as a Bragg grating [0058] denotes that each Bragg grating can be formed as a planar waveguide structure).
Regarding claim 7, Shevy teaches the standing wave optical resonator of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first mirror, the second mirror, and the Bragg grating are formed from planar optical waveguide on a substrate [0058].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-20 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 8, Shevy teaches a method for generating an optical frequency comb with a standing wave optical resonator comprising a Bragg grating (fig. 7 160 intracavity filter), a first mirror (FM) (fiber grating reflector 111), a second mirror (SM) (fiber grating reflector 121), the method comprising: receiving, at a first FM port of the first mirror, an optical pump signal having a carrier wavelength in a stop bandwidth of the Bragg grating and which is closer to a resonance shifted higher in wavelength than to an adjacent resonance shifted lower in frequency (Pump Beam 101), wherein the first mirror is optically coupled to a first port of the Bragg grating and the second mirror is optically coupled to a second port of the Bragg grating (see fig. 7); transmitting a portion of the optical pump signal into the standing wave optical resonator (101A transmitted Pump Beam);
Shevy does not specifically teach with the Bragg grating, alternately shifting, lower and higher in wavelength, resonances of the standing wave optical resonator in the stop bandwidth of the Bragg grating; generating the optical frequency comb in the standing wave optical resonator; and transmitting a portion of the optical frequency comb from the first FM port of the first mirror.
Regarding claims 15-20, Shevy does not teach apparatus for generating an optical frequency comb, the apparatus comprising: a non-reciprocal optical device (NROD) including a first NROD port configured to receive an optical pump signal, a second NROD port configured to transmit a portion of the optical pump signal and to receive a portion of the optical frequency comb, and a third NROD port configured to transmit a portion of the portion of the optical frequency comb; and a standing wave optical resonator, comprising: a first mirror (FM) comprising (a) a first FM port optically coupled to the first NROD port and configured to transmit the portion of the optical frequency comb to the first NROD port and to receive the portion of the optical pump signal from the first NROD port, and (b) a second FM port;
Shevy does teach a Bragg grating (BG) comprising a first BG port and a second BG port, wherein the first BG port is optically coupled to the second FM port, and wherein the Bragg grating is configured to alternately shift, lower and higher in wavelength, resonances of the standing wave optical resonator in a stop bandwidth of the Bragg grating, wherein the optical pump signal has a carrier wavelength in the stop bandwidth and which is closer to a resonance shifted higher in wavelength than to an adjacent resonance shifted lower in wavelength; and a second mirror (SM) comprising a first SM port optically coupled to the second BG port (see above).
Conclusion
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/PHU VU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2871