Modular architecture for fully non-blocking silicon photonic switch fabric

Area of Science:

• Integrated photonics
• Optical switching architectures

Background:

• Future data communication systems require compact, low-energy, bandwidth-dense interconnects.
• Widespread adoption necessitates integration with electronics using standard microelectronic foundry processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate the feasibility of a silicon photonic switch fabric using modular building blocks.
• To explore innovative packaging and integration schemes for large port count optical switching.

Main Methods:

• Development of 1x8 and 8x1 microring-based silicon photonic switch building blocks.
• Software control implementation for the switch architecture.
• Analysis and comparison of the proposed architecture with existing switching technologies.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated feasibility of an 8x8 architecture composed of silicon photonic building blocks.
• Achieved a fully non-blocking switch with path-independent insertion loss and low crosstalk.
• Proposed architecture shows favorable scaling to large port counts regarding crosstalk and footprint.

Conclusions:

• Modular silicon photonic building blocks offer a new path for switch fabric design.
• Innovative packaging and integration schemes are key for large port count optical switches.
• Separating switch fabrics into functional building blocks simplifies manufacturing and reduces die-level I/O requirements.