Active Ultrahigh-Q (0.2 × 10⁶ ) THz Topological Cavities on a Chip

Area of Science:

• Photonics
• Materials Science
• Electrical Engineering

Background:

• Semiconductor scaling increases core counts, demanding higher interconnect capacity for bandwidth density and energy efficiency.
• Existing interconnects face bottlenecks in bandwidth density and energy efficiency, hindering high-speed electronics.
• Low-loss terahertz silicon interconnects offer a promising solution to these challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a novel low-loss terahertz topological interconnect-cavity system.
• To demonstrate active signal routing through sharp bends using critical coupling.
• To achieve energy-efficient optical control and dynamic tailoring of cavity properties.

Main Methods:

• Integration of a topological interconnect with an ultrahigh-quality (Q) factor topological cavity (Q = 0.2 × 10^6).
• Utilizing critical coupling for signal routing and modulation.
• Demonstrating dynamic control over cavity resonance, linewidth, and modulation with suppressed back reflection.

Main Results:

• Achieved active signal routing through sharp bends with a topologically protected, ultrahigh-Q factor cavity.
• Demonstrated energy-efficient optical control with 60 dB modulation.
• Showcased dynamic control of critical coupling for on-chip tailoring of cavity properties.

Conclusions:

• The developed terahertz topological interconnect-cavity system addresses critical bottlenecks in current electronic systems.
• The silicon-based, CMOS-compatible technology is ideal for 6G terahertz communication devices and hybrid electronic-photonic integration.
• The ultrahigh-Q cavity technology enables advancements in terahertz topological integrated circuits, sensors, and nonlinear photonic devices.