Germanium photodetector with 60 GHz bandwidth using inductive gain peaking

Area of Science:

• Integrated photonics
• Optoelectronics
• Silicon photonics

Background:

• Germanium-on-silicon photodetectors are crucial for CMOS-compatible integrated photonics.
• Previous research indicated theoretical bandwidth increases with circuit inductors and capacitors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To experimentally demonstrate bandwidth enhancement in germanium-on-silicon photodetectors.
• To validate the use of gain peaking for improving detector speed.

Main Methods:

• Incorporation of a carefully chosen inductor and capacitor into the photodetector circuit.
• Experimental measurement of the photodetector's 3dB bandwidth.

Main Results:

• The implemented circuit successfully doubled the photodetector's 3dB bandwidth.
• Achieved a record 3dB bandwidth of 60 GHz.

Conclusions:

• Gain peaking is an effective and generally applicable technique for increasing photodetector bandwidth.
• This approach offers a practical solution for enhancing detector speed in integrated photonics systems without complex capacitance reduction.