Abstract
Silicon photonics (SiPh) shows considerable potential as a radiation-hard technology for building the optical data transmission links for future high-energy physics (HEP) experiments at CERN. Optical modulators are a key component of optical links, which will need to withstand radiation doses in excess of 10 MGy. The geometrical parameters and doping concentrations of two popular types of SiPh modulators, Mach–Zehnder and ring modulators (RMs), have been varied in order to study their impact on the device radiation tolerance. They were exposed to an X-ray beam to test their resistance to ionizing radiation. The RM with the highest doping concentration is shown to be the most tolerant, showing no degradation in performance up to the highest dose of 11 MGy. Moreover, we report first evidence of the dependence of the radiation tolerance on the RM operating temperature.
Highlights
T HE proton-proton collisions in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN generate high levels of radiation in the measurement systems of the detectors that observe the collisions
Based on the findings of [8] and the Hardening By Design (HBD) methods suggested therein, a new Silicon Photonics Integrated Circuit (PIC) with a novel and improved design of the SiPh modulators was designed at CERN and fabricated by imec [9] as a part of a multi-project wafer (MPW) run
The Ring Modulator (RM) were operated at 1 V reverse bias voltage on average, which is a good approximation of the average bias voltage applied to the modulators when integrated into a transmitter for data communication [15], [16]
Summary
T HE proton-proton collisions in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN generate high levels of radiation in the measurement systems of the detectors that observe the collisions. These systems produce a vast amount of measured data. Higher luminosity generally leads to a greater number of collisions Both the amount of data produced and the levels of radiation will increase significantly. Based on the findings of [8] and the Hardening By Design (HBD) methods suggested therein, a new Silicon Photonics Integrated Circuit (PIC) with a novel and improved design of the SiPh modulators was designed at CERN and fabricated by imec [9] as a part of a multi-project wafer (MPW) run. The radiation tolerance of the resulting PICs has been studied using an X-ray source and the results are reported below
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