100-Gbps per-channel all-optical wavelength conversion without pre-amplifiers based on an integrated nanophotonic...

Area of Science:

• Photonics and Optical Communications
• Materials Science

Background:

• All-optical wavelength conversion using four-wave mixing is crucial for optical fiber communications.
• Key advantages include femtosecond response, modulation-format transparency, and network management flexibility.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate the first optical translation of 32-GBaud 16QAM signals using an integrated silicon nitride (Si3N4) nonlinear nanophotonic waveguide.
• To achieve high on-chip conversion efficiency and low sensitivity penalty for advanced optical signal processing.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a dispersion-engineered, low-loss Si3N4 nonlinear nanophotonic waveguide compatible with complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) processes.
• Achieved on-chip continuous-wave conversion efficiency of -0.6 dB from S band to C band.
• Demonstrated pre-amplifier-free, multichannel wavelength conversion of over-100-Gbps coherent signals.

Main Results:

• Successfully translated 32-GBaud 16QAM signals with a sensitivity penalty of less than 0.5 dB.
• Achieved high conversion efficiency, eliminating the need for external optical amplifiers for signal demodulation.
• Showcased multichannel wavelength conversion flexibility using the same Si3N4 waveguide by altering the pump wavelength.

Conclusions:

• The integrated Si3N4 nanophotonic waveguide enables efficient and flexible all-optical wavelength conversion for high-speed optical communications.
• Optimizing the waveguide design promises a bandwidth over 100 nm, crucial for commercial coherent fiber communications.
• The technology holds significant potential for optical signal processing, imaging, spectroscopy, and quantum optics.