Short Carbon Nanotube Nano-Film-Based Polymer/SiO

Area of Science:

• Photonics and Optical Engineering
• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Micro-ring resonators are crucial components in integrated photonics for wavelength filtering.
• Improving the performance metrics of micro-ring filters, such as quality factor and thermal stability, is an ongoing research challenge.
• Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) possess unique optical and thermal properties that can be leveraged to enhance photonic devices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and characterize a polymer/SiO2 hybrid waveguide micro-ring filter integrated with a carbon nanotube (CNT) nano-film.
• To investigate the impact of the CNT nano-film on the filter's coherent depth, quality factor, and all-optical tunable performance.
• To evaluate the enhanced thermal sensitivity and overall device performance compared to filters without the CNT nano-film.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a polymer/SiO2 hybrid waveguide micro-ring filter with a CNT nano-film coated on the waveguide core.
• Characterization of the optical properties, including coherent depth and quality factor, of the fabricated filter.
• Experimental measurement of the all-optical wavelength tuning efficiency and thermal sensitivity using optical pumping.

Main Results:

• The CNT nano-film significantly improved the coherent depth and quality factor of the micro-ring filter.
• The all-optical wavelength tuning efficiency reached -0.030 nm/mW, 1.67 times higher than the filter without the CNT nano-film.
• The thermal sensitivity was enhanced by a factor of 25.7 compared to the baseline filter, demonstrating the CNT nano-film's large thermo-optic effect.

Conclusions:

• The integration of a CNT nano-film into a polymer/SiO2 hybrid waveguide micro-ring filter offers substantial improvements in performance.
• The device exhibits high all-optical tuning efficiency, enhanced thermal sensitivity, and a compact structure.
• This CNT-enhanced micro-ring filter shows significant potential for applications in optical filters, switches, sensors, and spectral analysis.