Modulators in Silicon Photonics—Heterogenous Integration & and Beyond

The article below presents a review of current research on silicon photonics. Herein, an overview of current silicon modulator types and modern integration approaches is presented including direct bonding methods and micro-transfer printing. An analysis of current state of the art silicon modulators is also given. Finally, new prospects for III–V-silicon integration are explored and the prospects of an integrated modulator compatible with current CMOS processing is investigated.

PR40_Designing Integrated Silicon Photonics Flexible High-Data Rate Transceivers (NNX16AD14G-Y1)

We study a transceiver architecture, which is based on an innovative design which generates a flexible number of communication streams from a single laser. This approach can achieve reductions in size, weight, and energy consumption, and improvements on link performance and bandwidth compared to both RF communications and existing optical technologies Summary of a Project Outcomes report of research funded by NASA.

PR42_Components for an Integrated Recirculating Frequency Shifter Device (NNX16AD14G-Y3)

We report and discuss measurements of silicon photonics components which comprise a recirculating variable-count frequency shifter (RVCFS) device. Summary of a Project Outcomes report of research funded by NASA.

Measurements of a Silicon Photonic ROADM (Project Report CIAN2-3-Y3)

A multi-university partnership led by UCSD collaborated with Sandia National Labs in an NSF-funded silicon photonics multi-project wafer (MPW) project. This is a report of the ROADM +VOA (reconfigurable optical add drop multiplexer + variable optical attenuator) device made using silicon photonics, including passive and doped silicon waveguides and metalization.

PR_30 Towards Programmable Optical Network Front-end Devices Using Silicon Photonics (1525090-PO)

We study how the performance and utility of high-bandwidth, energy-efficient communication networks can be improved by enabling programmability and user-defined tunability in the optical front-ends using silicon photonics. Summary of a Project Outcomes report of research funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation under Project Number 1525090 (Year 1).

PR_32 Managing Spectral Content in Optical Networks Using Silicon Photonics (1525090-Y3)

We design of compact head-end components at the transceiver level using silicon photonics to implement disaggregation for improving optical communications. We study how to use optical side channels to pass control messages without increasing the number of fibers or input/output ports. Summary of a Project Outcomes report of research funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation under Project Number 1525090 (Year 3).

PR_31 Back-to-Back Test of Reconfigurable Add-Drop Using a Silicon Photonics Microchip (1525090-Y2)

We study the design of compact head-end components at the transceiver level using silicon photonics to implement disaggregation for improving optical communications, and demonstrate novel functionality at the link level. Summary of a Project Outcomes report of research funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation under Project Number 1525090 (Year 2).

PR36 Towards the Integration of Microring-based Photon-Pair Sources in Silicon Photonics (1640968-Y3)

Our research focused on developing integrated pair sources using silicon photonics technology. This device uses a microring resonator for pair generation. Activities performed this year include measurements of silicon photonic entangled-pair and heralded single photon generation using an integrated photonic microchip that includes the pair generation resonator as well as tunable filters. Summary of a Project Outcomes report of research funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation under Project Number 1640968 (Year 3).