Abstract
We show the feasibility of controlling the magnetic permeability of optical semiconductor devices on InP-based photonic integration platforms. We have achieved the permeability control of GaInAsP/InP semiconductor waveguides by combining the waveguide with a metamaterial consisting of gate-controlled split ring resonators. The split-ring resonators interact magnetically with light travelling in the waveguide and move the effective relative permeability of the waveguide away from 1 at optical frequencies. The variation in permeability can be controlled with the gate voltage. Using this variable-permeability waveguide, we have built an optical modulator consisting of a GaInAsP/InP Mach–Zehnder interferometer for use at an optical communication wavelength of 1.55 μm. The device changes the permeability of its waveguide arm with controlling gate voltage, thereby varying the refractive index of the arm to modulate the intensity of light. For the study of variable-permeability waveguide devices, we also propose a method of extracting separately the permittivity and permeability values of devices from the experimental data of light transmission. Adjusting the permeability of optical semiconductors to the needs of device designers will open the promising field of ‘permeability engineering’. Permeability engineering will facilitate the manipulation of light and the management of photons, thereby contributing to the development of novel devices with sophisticated functions for photonic integration.
Highlights
The photonic integrated circuit (PIC) is an on-chip photonic system consisting of various optoelectronic devices such as light sources, modulators, isolators, and detectors that are monolithically integrated and interconnected on a semiconductor substrate
Plan view of GaInAsP/InP Mach–Zehnder interferometer with tri-gate metamaterial metamaterial (TGM) attached on waveguide arm.(a)(a)
There are two techniques at present to adjust the optical properties of semiconductors to the needs of device designers
Summary
The photonic integrated circuit (PIC) is an on-chip photonic system consisting of various optoelectronic devices such as light sources, modulators, isolators, and detectors that are monolithically integrated and interconnected on a semiconductor substrate. Great attention is paid to scale-down, lower power consumption, and increase functions of optoelectronic devices to make next-generation PICs with high-density integration and high-level functionality To develop such advanced photonic devices, we have proposed controlling the permeability of semiconductor materials used to make the devices [1,2]. If we can modulate permeability (μ → μ + ∆μ) in addition to permittivity, we will be able to obtain a larger change ∆n given by n + ∆n = (ε + ∆ε)1/2 (μ + ∆μ)1/2 This can be used to create highly-efficient and small-sized optical modulators for PICs. we describe the design, fabrication, and measurement of this permeability-controlled modulator. Controllable permeability has more potential applications for metaphotonics and next-generation PICs; wide-angle optical beam deflection using a semiconductor superprism is an example, which is mentioned in the Summary
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