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Fabrication of Silica Ultra High Quality Factor Microresonators
Published on: July 2, 2012
Low power and compact reconfigurable multiplexing devices based on silicon microring resonators
Po Dong1, Wei Qian, Hong Liang
1Kotura Inc., Monterey Park, CA 91754, USA. pdong@kotura.com
Optics Express
|July 1, 2010
Summary
We developed new silicon microring resonator devices for reconfigurable optical multiplexing. These devices use low power and minimize heat interference, enabling compact designs.
Area of Science:
- Photonics and Optical Engineering
- Materials Science
- Integrated Optics
Background:
- Silicon microring resonators are key components in integrated photonic circuits.
- Efficient thermal tuning is crucial for reconfigurable optical devices.
- Minimizing thermal crosstalk is essential for device density and performance.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present thermally reconfigurable multiplexing devices using silicon microring resonators.
- To demonstrate low tuning power and low thermal crosstalk.
- To enable compact and efficient optical multiplexing solutions.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing silicon microring resonators with integrated micro-heaters.
- Employing the thermo-optic effect of silicon for wavelength tuning.
- Implementing thermal isolation trenches to reduce heat dissipation.
- Investigating thermal crosstalk for closely spaced resonators.
Main Results:
- Achieved a low tuning power of 21 mW per free spectral range for a single ring.
- Demonstrated negligible thermal crosstalk for microring resonators spaced by 15 micrometers.
- Reported a tuning time constant of less than 10 microseconds.
Conclusions:
- The developed devices offer efficient thermal tuning with low power consumption.
- The demonstrated low thermal crosstalk allows for compact device integration.
- These thermally reconfigurable microring resonators are promising for advanced optical communication systems.
