Prospects for photon-pair generation using silicon microring resonators with two photon absorption and free carrier absorption

Abstract

Silicon microring resonators are being recently used for high-brightness and efficient photon-pair generation at telecommunication wavelengths. Here, based on detailed theoretical and numerical modeling, we study the impact on pair generation of increasing the optical pump power, which generally causes nonlinear impairments such as free-carrier and two-photon absorption in silicon micro-resonators. Contrary to expectation, the pair generation properties of such devices may seem to be preserved at increasing pump powers, although not better than at a moderate pump power. These results suggest that silicon microrings can be used for pair generation over a wide range of pump powers, which may benefit applications in remotely pumped architectures, where the pump level might not be known a priori.