Compact 1 × 3 thin-film lithium niobate optical switch driven by a single radio frequency source

Area of Science:

• Photonics and Optical Engineering
• Integrated Optics
• Telecommunications

Background:

• Optical switches are crucial for high-speed data exchange in data centers.
• Existing solutions often require complex electrical drivers and higher power consumption.
• Thin-film lithium niobate technology offers potential for miniaturized and efficient optical devices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and demonstrate a novel multi-channel optical switch using thin-film lithium niobate.
• To achieve high-speed switching with reduced driving voltage and power consumption.
• To enable efficient data routing in data centers and optical networks.

Main Methods:

• Design and fabrication of a multi-channel optical switch based on cascaded Mach-Zehnder interferometers.
• Integration of mode division multiplexers and coplanar waveguide electrodes for 3-channel control.
• Characterization of switching time, driving voltage, and extinction ratio.

Main Results:

• Demonstration of a 3-channel thin-film lithium niobate optical switch.
• Achieved a switching time of less than 39.1 picoseconds.
• Observed a maximum driving voltage of 5.2 V and an extinction ratio greater than 14.8 dB.

Conclusions:

• The developed optical switch meets the demands for high-speed and low-latency data center applications.
• The device simplifies electrical driver requirements, reducing complexity and power.
• This technology is suitable for large-scale optical networks and advanced optical communication systems.