High-performance and power-efficient 2×2 optical switch on Silicon-on-Insulator.

Area of Science:

• Photonics
• Nanotechnology
• Integrated Optics

Background:

• Photonic switches are crucial for high-speed optical networks.
• Existing switches often face challenges with size, power consumption, and performance.
• CMOS-compatible platforms are desired for scalable photonic integration.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a compact and highly-optimized 2x2 optical switch.
• To leverage CMOS-compatible photonic crystal technology for device fabrication.
• To achieve low power consumption and high-speed switching.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a 2x2 optical switch using photonic crystal technology.
• Integration onto a CMOS-compatible platform.
• Characterization of optical performance including insertion loss and contrast.
• Evaluation of thermo-optic design for power efficiency and switching speed.

Main Results:

• A compact device footprint of 15µm x 15µm was achieved.
• On-chip insertion loss was measured to be below 1 dB.
• Static contrast reached 40 dB, and dynamic contrast exceeded 20 dB.
• Power consumption was maintained below 3 mW with a switching time of 1 µs.

Conclusions:

• The demonstrated photonic crystal optical switch offers excellent performance metrics.
• The device is suitable for integration into larger photonic systems due to its CMOS compatibility.
• This work represents a significant advancement in compact, low-power, and high-speed optical switching technology.