Abstract
We propose a new programmable integrated photonic device, the Field Programmable Photonic Array, which follows a similar rationale as that of Field Programmable Gate Arrays and Field Programmable Analog Arrays in electronics. This high-level concept, basic photonic building blocks, design principles, and technology and physical implementation are discussed. Experimental evidence of its feasibility is also provided.
Highlights
Programmable Multifunctional Photonics (PMP) seeks the design of common integrated optical hardware configurations, which can implement a wide variety of functionalities by suitable programming [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]
Several authors [6,7,9,10] have reported theoretical work proposing different configurations and design principles for programmable circuits based on the cascade of either beamsplitters [7,9,10] or integrated Mach Zehnder Interferometers [6] (MZIs). These proposals offer versatile hardware solutions to the implementation of programmable circuits but none of them defines a complete architectural solution of a photonics device that could be programmed for the implementation of arbitrary simple, complex or even simultaneous circuits. This concept is sustained by Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) [11,12] and Field Programmable Analog Arrays (FPAAs) [13,14,15,16] and following a similar rationale behind the principles of these devices we propose here the implementation of a similar concept in integrated photonics, that can be realized by combining a set of Programmable Photonics Analog Blocks (PPABs) and a set of Reconfigurable Photonic Interconnects (RPIs) implemented over a photonic chip
The versatility of the Field Programmable Photonic Array (FPPA) is directly proportional to the number of PPABs and RPIs contained in the integrated chip
Summary
Programmable Multifunctional Photonics (PMP) seeks the design of common integrated optical hardware configurations, which can implement a wide variety of functionalities by suitable programming [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]. Several authors [6,7,9,10] have reported theoretical work proposing different configurations and design principles for programmable circuits based on the cascade of either beamsplitters [7,9,10] or integrated Mach Zehnder Interferometers [6] (MZIs) These proposals offer versatile hardware solutions to the implementation of programmable circuits but none of them defines a complete architectural solution of a photonics device that could be programmed for the implementation of arbitrary simple, complex or even simultaneous circuits.
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