We present our work in the European project MORPHIC to extend an established silicon photonics platform with low-power and non-volatile micro-electromechanical (MEMS) actuators to demonstrate large-scale programmable photonic integrated circuits (PICs).
We present our work to extend silicon photonics with MEMS actuators to enable low-power, large scale programmable photonic circuits. For this, we start from the existing iSiPP50G silicon photonics platform of IMEC, where we add free-standing movable waveguides using a few post-processing steps. This allows us to implement phase shifters and tunable couplers using electrostatically actuated MEMS, while at the same time maintaining all the original functionality of the silicon photonics platform. The MEMS devices are protected using a wafer-level sealing approach and interfaced with custom multi-channel driver and readout electronics.
Photonic Integrated Circuits have made it possible to decrease the footprint of traditionally bulky optical systems and they create opportunities for various new and fascinating applications. One of the limiting factors for the widespread adaption of PICs is their connection to the outside world. As the mode field diameter of optical modes in waveguides tends to be an order of magnitude smaller than in their fiber counterparts, creating an efficient, robust and alignmenttolerant fiber-to-chip interface remains a challenge. In this work, we investigate the optimization of the fiber-side of the optical interface, whereas the chip itself remains untouched and makes use of spot-size convertors. Optical fiber tips can be functionalized using two-photon polymerization-based 3D nanoprinting technology, which offers full 3D design freedom and sub-micrometer resolution. We present a down-taper design strategy to match the mode-field diameter of single-mode optical fibers to the modefield diameter of waveguides with spot-size converters on PICs. The 3D printed down-tapers are characterized towards their geometry and mode shape, and we experimentally demonstrate their use for coupling towards a Silicon-On-Insulator chip with spot-size convertors. Furthermore, the performance of these down-tapered fibers is compared to conventional lensed fibers in terms of optical coupling efficiency.
In the European project MORPHIC we develop a platform for programmable silicon photonic circuits enabled by waveguide-integrated micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS). MEMS can add compact, and low-power phase shifters and couplers to an established silicon photonics platform with high-speed modulators and detectors. This MEMS technology is used for a new class of programmable photonic circuits, that can be reconfigured using electronics and software, consisting of large interconnected meshes of phase shifters and couplers. MORPHIC is also developing the packaging and driver electronics interfacing schemes for such large circuits, creating a supply chain for rapid prototyping new photonic chip concepts. These will be demonstrated in different applications, such as switching, beamforming and microwave photonics.
Optimally coupling light in an integrated Photonic crystal (PhC) cavity is challenging, but crucial for improving their sensing properties. Here we experimentally investigate the impact of side coupling and in-line coupling on the transmission properties of integrated silicon PhC based air-slot cavities by probing the near field of the cavity mode with a nano fiber tip. These cavities were fabricated with standard deep UV lithography. Positioning this nano-tip near and inside 130 nm wide PhC slot cavity modifies the dielectric map of the cavity which perturbs the intensity scattered from the cavity surface. We show that the mapping of the nano tip induced intensity variations provides some insight about the nature of the confinement of electric field of the various modes of slot cavities. Such intensity maps carry moreover information about the cavity light coupling, which is useful for maximizing the intensity of PhC slot cavity modes.
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