650-nm 1 × 2 polymeric thermo-optic switch with low power consumption

Area of Science:

• Photonics and Optical Engineering
• Materials Science
• Semiconductor Device Fabrication

Background:

• Thermo-optic switches are crucial for optical communication networks.
• Existing devices often require high power consumption or lack efficiency at specific wavelengths.
• Polymeric materials offer potential for low-cost, high-performance optical components.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design, simulate, and fabricate a low-power 1x2 polymeric thermo-optic switch.
• To optimize device performance at the 650 nm low-loss window for polymer optical fibers.
• To evaluate the switch's extinction ratio, power consumption, and switching speeds.

Main Methods:

• Device design and simulation of characteristic parameters.
• Fabrication using standard semiconductor techniques: spin-coating, photolithography, and dry etching.
• Material selection based on poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA).
• Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) structure implementation.

Main Results:

• Achieved an extinction ratio exceeding 23.4 dB at 650 nm.
• Demonstrated very low power consumption of 5.3 mW.
• Measured switching rise and fall times of 464.4 µs and 448.0 µs, respectively.

Conclusions:

• The fabricated PMMA-based MZI thermo-optic switch operates efficiently at 650 nm.
• The device exhibits excellent performance metrics, including high extinction ratio and low power demand.
• This work contributes a promising low-power switching solution for optical communication systems.