Silica-on-silicon planar lightwave circuits have a number of advantages including stability and low insertion loss to optical fiber networks. Standard GeO2 doping levels in the waveguide cores lead to a refractive index contrast, n/n, of 0.75%–2%. This range of index contrast requires relatively large bend radii in order to
minimize bend losses. This limits the density scaling of these circuits. By using high dopant levels for a Δn/n of 4%, the bend radius can be decreased to less than 1 mm, from which significant gains in optical circuit density can be obtained. In addition, low-loss ring resonators with free spectral ranges of a few tens of gigahertz can be realized, enabling some additional optical signal processing and filtering on that scale. Optical devices with such high dopant levels have been reported by Bellman et al. in 2004 [1] but to the authors' knowledge, no other experimental work on high-delta GeO2-doped waveguides has been reported since. In this paper, we present experimental measurements on high-delta devices including directional couplers, MMI couplers, Mach-Zehnder interferometers, and ring resonators. Device performance, including propagation loss, bend loss, interferometer contrast ratio and birefringence will be presented. We demonstrate that ring resonators with 40 GHz free spectral range can be fabricated for optical signal processing.
Polarization-multiplexed optical signals require that the birefringence of optical devices be controlled. Birefringence in silica-on-silicon waveguides emerges from a combination of form birefringence and stress birefringence, both of which can be affected by the core dopant distribution in the case of rectangular-core waveguides. In this paper, we present a numerical and experimental study of the effect of dopant diffusion on waveguide modal birefringence. In the numerical study, modal birefringence is calculated with a finite element model that includes thermal stress effects. The effect of diffusion on form birefringence and stress birefringence will be illustrated. It will be shown that the initial index step of the waveguide has an influence on the evolution of the modal birefringence as a function of diffusion. In the experimental study, measurements of the phase and group birefringence will be presented as a function of waveguide width for waveguides with thermally diffused cores. It will be shown that thermal diffusion can be used for birefringence control of rectangular waveguides.
Silica-on-silicon planar lightwave circuit (PLC) technology is well established and provides a low loss and stable
photonic device platform. However, limitations in size and integration of active components remain. Engineering of the
layer structure in silica PLCs to achieve high-index contrast, compact device architectures and monolithically integrated
optical nonlinearities is described. Modeling of properties of doped-silica layers provides a design strategy for
optimization of waveguide loss and birefringence. Optical nonlinearities in poled silica layers have been demonstrated,
and recent work to incorporate these into functional device structures and exploit them for high speed modulation is
reported.
The optimization of a 2×2 silica-on-silicon Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) thermo-optic switch is presented. The
device consists of 2 multimode interference (MMI) couplers as splitter and combiner with metal heater strips for phase
control. The switching characteristics of the devices have been examined in detail as a function of several parameters.
The electrical power consumption of the switch has been reduced by a factor of 2 by etching trenches alongside the
waveguide heaters located on the arms of the MZI, and the polarization dependent loss has been controlled and reduced
through adjustment of top cladding properties. The effect on the response time of the switch of these design changes has
been investigated. Detailed characterization of the devices will be presented, and trade-offs in optimization discussed.
Incorporation of these device elements into increasingly complex components for new applications in optical signal
processing will be demonstrated.
The top cladding layer in planar lightwave circuits (PLC) is more than an optical buffer. By variously doping, adjusting
the thickness of, etching patterns in and annealing the cladding layers in waveguide devices, a wide range of sensors and
photonic devices can be realized. The material properties of the cladding determine, for instance, the modal
birefringence of the waveguides; knowledge and control of these properties can be harnessed to produce polarization-independent
components. The fabrication of thermo-optically controlled switches and interferometers for tunable
filtering and optical signal processing is possible through the creation of micro heaters on top of the cladding. The
optimization of such components can benefit from engineering of the cladding, ranging from better planarization and
thickness control, to selective etching to better confine the heat distribution and provide stress relief. In addition, the
thermal properties of a given device can be radically enhanced by using a polymer layer as top cladding, which yields an
order of magnitude increase in the temperature sensitivity, an invaluable enhancement that can be harnessed for phase-tunable
waveguides or sensor structures. Long period gratings (LPGs) can be etched in the lower cladding to provide
filtering, signal processing, or sensor functions. In a borophosphosilicate cladding, typically used in silica-on-silicon
PLCs, control of the reflow properties through composition can be exploited to manufacture fillable microchannels that
are monolithically integrated with solid-core devices, enabling a unique platform for sensing, signal processing, or
nonlinear optics.
Optical waveguide crossings based on silica-on-silicon technology are investigated. The effect of crossing angle
(θ) on light transmitted at through and cross-port on a sequence of waveguide crossings with angle varying from
7 to 28° is modeled and experimentally validated. Results demonstrate that structures with small footprint
(θ≈9°) can achieve low crosstalk of -32 dB with high throughput, insensitivity to wavelength of operation, low
polarization dependent loss of 0.6 dB, and low sensitivity to fabrication tolerances. As a result, waveguide
crossings with small crossing angle present an attractive approach to reducing the overall component footprint
without compromising the performance.
The development of silica planar lightwave circuits (PLCs) employing multiple phase-shifting elements to achieve optical signal processing is presented. Thermo-optic switching in Mach Zehnder interferometer (MZI) structures has been demonstrated with typical switching powers of 250-300 mW. 6-loop lattice-form MZI devices designed with specific filter responses have been fabricated, packaged, and tested. 10 GHz to 40 GHz pulse repetition rate multiplication has been achieved, and the tunability of the 6 phase control elements allows the generation of arbitrary 4-bit binary code patterns. Further improvements in complexity, power consumption, loss, and polarization sensitivity in these devices are discussed.
Integrated optofluidic devices have many potential applications for on-chip analysis and sensing. The fabrication of
single-mode liquid-core waveguides in an integrated format allows the implementation of robust and very sensitive
interferometers that combine long optical paths (on the cm scale) with small volumes (less than a nanoliter). We have
demonstrated the monolithic integration of microchannels and liquid-core waveguides with planar silica lightwave
circuits, which allows a number of refractometer devices to be implemented. Of these, we demonstrate experimentally a
monolithic Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) comprising a 20 mm-long liquid-core waveguide. The liquid-core
waveguide is quasi single mode at 1550 nm when filled with a liquid of nominal index of ~1.47 (such as toluene or an
index matching fluid). In these conditions, the output of the MZI is a pure cosine function, as a function of a linear
progression of the refractive index of the liquid medium. Furthermore, the high contrast ratio experimentally observed in
the output function allows a precise monitoring of refractive index changes by tracking the position of the transmission
minimum in the spectral domain. Refractive index variations can be measured to a precision on the order of 4x10-6. The
large differential in thermo-optic coefficients between liquid media and silica allows the structure to function as a
temperature sensor with a precision on the order of 10-2 degrees Celsius. The measurement of the spectral fringe spacing
of the interferometer response allows absolute-value measurements of temperature and refractive index.
The use of materials with a high thermo-optic coefficient would lead to significant improvements in energy consumption
and thermal management in optical switching and sensing devices. Most liquids rank among materials having the highest
thermo-optic coefficients, along with polymers and silicon. We have developed technology to directly incorporate
liquids in integrated silica-on-silicon photonic device structures. Using this technology, we demonstrate experimentally
integrated Mach-Zehnder interferometers (MZIs) comprising a liquid-core waveguide in one of the interferometer arms.
Because of the large differential between the thermo-optic coefficients of silica and the liquid medium, the output of this
device can be modulated through the thermal control of the device chip. A high contrast ratio (more than 20 dB) in the
interferometer output modulation is obtained, demonstrating that the optical loss is well balanced between the two
interferometer paths. The temperature variation required to fully cycle the output state is less than 0.5 degrees Celsius.
Designs for low power thermo-optic switches based on these MZI structures with integrated heating electrodes are
presented. The inclusion of a second liquid-core waveguide in the "passive" interferometer arm can enable athermal and
polarization insensitive devices.
The performance of silica-on-silicon planar waveguide devices is highly dependent on the properties of the layers comprising their structure. In this work we have investigated in some detail the properties of doped-silica layers formed by plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD). Parameters such as the refractive index, optical loss, stress and reflow characteristics of borophosphosilicate glass (BPSG) layers have been studied as a function of composition and processing conditions. Using the information gained, we have fabricated arrayed waveguide grating (AWG) demultiplexers and Bragg grating wavelength filter devices. Through careful adjustment of the properties of the top BPSG cladding layers, the performance of these devices, which are highly wavelength and polarization sensitive, can be easily controlled. Correlation of wavelength dependence, optical loss, and polarization dependence of different device designs, with the properties of the top BPSG cladding layer has allowed optimization of these devices and provides invaluable materials and process knowledge for the future use of silica-based layers in these and other photonic device applications.
Polymeric materials have been widely used for the fabrication of photonic devices, in particular for applications in short haul optical networks employing coarse wavelength division multiplexing (CWDM). However, the molecular design and processing of polymeric materials to have all the properties required for the fabrication of high performance photonic devices continue to present challenges. This paper presents data on the design, fabrication and characterization of waveguide devices using novel fluorinated poly(arylene ether ketone) materials. These materials exhibit low optical loss (slab loss ~ 0.5 dB/cm at 1550 nm), high thermal stability (1 wt% loss at temperatures up to 430 °C), and are easily processed at temperatures lower than those previously reported for poly(arylene ether)s (< 200 °C). High quality waveguides have been fabricated using standard photolithographic processes. Issues affecting polymer layer and device birefringence and optical loss have been investigated, including molecular structure, processing conditions and substrate selection. Coupling devices sensitive to waveguide dimensions have been designed and fabricated, and their output compared to numerical simulations. Characterization of these devices allows further optimization of the materials and the waveguide process and assists with the design of more complex polymer photonic components.
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