Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 25, 2025
10:40
High Resolution Phonon-assisted Quasi-resonance Fluorescence Spectroscopy
Published on: June 28, 2016
7.6K
Broadband picometer-scale resolution on-chip spectrometer with reconfigurable photonics
Chunhui Yao1, Minjia Chen1, Ting Yan2
1Centre for Photonic Systems, Electrical Engineering Division, Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 0FA, UK.
Light, Science & Applications
|June 25, 2023
Summary
This study introduces a new optical spectrometer design using reconfigurable photonics and distributed filters. It achieves a record bandwidth-to-resolution ratio for miniaturized spectrometers, enabling precise in situ analysis.
Area of Science:
- Photonics and Spectrometry
- Integrated Optics
- Optical Engineering
Background:
- Miniaturized optical spectrometers are crucial for in situ, in vitro, and in vivo characterization.
- Existing scaled-down spectrometers face a trade-off between spectral resolution and operating bandwidth.
- Current designs are often application-specific, limiting their versatility.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose and demonstrate a novel global sampling strategy with distributed filters for ultra-broadband pseudo-random spectral responses.
- To overcome the resolution-bandwidth trade-off in miniaturized spectrometers.
- To leverage reconfigurable photonics for enhanced spectral shaping and programmability.
Main Methods:
- Utilized all-pass ring filters with tailored geometry for low self- and cross-correlation.
- Employed reconfigurable photonics and a Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) mesh for spectrum shaping.
- Integrated distributed filters onto a SiN platform for thermal stability.
Main Results:
- Achieved 256 diverse spectral responses on a single chip.
- Demonstrated a resolution of 20 pm for single spectral lines and 30 pm for dual spectral lines over a 115 nm bandwidth.
- Attained a record bandwidth-to-resolution ratio, with simulations indicating potential for picometer-scale resolution.
- Showcased programmability for user-defined resolution, computation complexity, and relative error.
- Exhibited excellent thermal stability (±2.0 °C) on the SiN platform.
Conclusions:
- The proposed global sampling strategy with distributed filters significantly enhances the bandwidth-to-resolution ratio in miniaturized spectrometers.
- Reconfigurable photonics offers unprecedented programmability for tailored spectroscopic analysis.
- The SiN integration platform ensures robust performance under varying temperatures, crucial for picometer-scale resolution.
