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Silicon photonic MEMS switches based on split waveguide crossings
Yinpeng Hu1, Yi Sun1, Ye Lu1
1State Key Laboratory of Extreme Photonics and Instrumentation, College of Optical Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
Nature Communications
|January 2, 2025
Summary
Researchers developed a novel silicon photonic switch using a split waveguide crossing (SWX) for efficient light manipulation. This technology enables high-performance photonic circuits with low loss and crosstalk across a wide bandwidth.
Area of Science:
- Photonics
- Integrated Optics
- Materials Science
Background:
- High-performance photonic switches are essential for scaling programmable and reconfigurable photonic circuits.
- Conventional optical switches face limitations in size, power consumption, and bandwidth due to mode coupling or interference mechanisms.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose and realize a novel silicon photonic 2x2 elementary switch.
- To overcome the limitations of conventional optical switches by introducing a new design principle.
Main Methods:
- A silicon photonic 2x2 elementary switch based on a split waveguide crossing (SWX) was designed and fabricated.
- The SWX manipulates light propagation by splitting and combining two halves to achieve OFF/ON switching states.
- A 64x64 switch array utilizing Benes topology was also fabricated and characterized.
Main Results:
- The proposed SWX switch demonstrated excellent performance with low excess loss and low crosstalk.
- The switch operates effectively over an ultrawide bandwidth.
- Fabricated devices, including the 64x64 array, show significant potential for practical applications.
Conclusions:
- The novel split waveguide crossing (SWX) offers a promising solution for high-performance photonic switching.
- This technology can enable advancements in photonic interconnects, Lidar, spectroscopy, photonic computing, and microwave photonics.
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