Low-loss Polymer Optical Waveguides Research Articles

Low-Voltage, Coupled Multiple Quantum Well Electroreflective Modulators Towards Ultralow Power Inter-Chip Optical Interconnects

An electroreflective modulator based on multiple-pass electroabsorption (EA) of coupled multiple quantum wells (CMQWs) is demonstrated for integration with low-loss polymer optical waveguides towards inter-chip and on-board optical interconnects at 850 nm. Taking advantage of coupling between quantum states in MQWs, the top polymer cladding and the bottom Au mirror form a Fabry–Perot cavity to further enhance the EA of CMQWs, thereby greatly improving the extinction ratio (ER) at a low voltage. The device achieves an ER of ∼6 dB and an insertion loss (IL) <3 dB at 2 V, notably outperforming conventional surface-incident EA modulators at the same driving voltage. A further optimized modulator design can achieve a peak ER of 9–12 dB at 2 V with a low IL of 2–3 dB and a relatively broad spectral bandwidth of ∼10 nm. The low capacitance and reverse bias operation at a low voltage potentially offer ∼10× lower power consumption compared to direct modulation of 850 nm lasers. This simple surface-incident CMQW modulator is a promising candidate for integration with ultralow power inter-chip and on-board interconnect architectures.

Low Loss Polymer Optical Waveguide Replicated from Flexible Film Stamp Made of Polymeric Material

This paper describes a flexible stamping method, which employs a flexible film stamp made of polymeric materials. Unlike conventional hard stamps, the flexible film stamp does not require either the stamp or its substrate to be perfectly flat, which means large area stamping is easy to achieve at reduced cost. We confirmed this by replicating 50 µm square multi-mode optical polymer waveguides. The propagation loss of the waveguide is only 0.06 dB/cm at a wavelength of 850 nm, which satisfies the basic requirement for optical circuit boards, and the waveguide was used to fabricate a flexible optical circuit board with mechanically transferable (MT) connectors.

Proton beam writing of low-loss polymer optical waveguides

Proton beam writing is a direct-write micromachining technique capable of producing three-dimensional microstructures with straight and smooth sidewalls. Low-loss channel waveguides in SU-8, a chemically amplified negative tone resist, were fabricated using a focused submicron beam of 2.0 MeV protons with a dose of 30 nC/mm2 and a beam current of approximately 2 pA. Propagation losses of approximately (0.19±0.03) dB/cm were measured at 632.8 nm wavelength. Waveguides of arbitrary design can be easily fabricated using proton beam writing, making the technique ideal for the rapid prototyping of optical circuits.

Absorption and scattering in low-loss polymer optical waveguides

The absolute absorption spectra of low-loss optical waveguides, together with their intrinsic and extrinsic scatterings, were measured in the near infrared. Photothermal deflection spectroscopy was used to measure the full absorption spectra of a series of fluorinated cross-linked polymers. Assignment of —CH3,—CH2—, and —OH overtones as well as of combinations of overtones were made by use of the theory of anharmonic vibrations based on a Morse potential for local modes. Details of the molecular potential are given. The total attenuation in slab waveguides made with these polymers was measured by a prism-coupling technique and compared with the absolute absorption. Losses that are due to the material itself and those that are due to the processing are quantified.

Low-loss Polymer Optical Waveguides with High Thermal Stability

ABSTRACTWe synthesized novel cross-linkable fluorinated copoly(arylene ether sulfide)s for optical waveguide applications, which have high thermal stability, high optical transparency in the infrared communication region, and much smaller birefringence than other thermally stable fluorinated polyimides. The refractive index of the material can be easily controlled from 1.515 to 1.587 by changing the copolymer composition in the materials. The birefringence of the cured polymers were 0.0031∼0.0039 at the wavelength of 1.55 μm. This is much lower than those of fluorinated polyimides for optical waveguides. The refractive index of fluorinated poly(arylene ether sulfide) (FPAESI) after being stored at 100 °C for 1000 hr remains almost constant demonstrating the thermal stability. The propagation loss of the channel waveguides fabricated using reactive ion etching was less than 0.4 dB/cm at the wavelength of 1.55 μm.

Crosslinkable polymers for optical waveguide devices. II. Fluorinated ether ketone oligomers bearing ethynyl group at the chain end

Fluorinated ether ketone oligomers bearing a crosslinkable ethynyl group at the chain end have been investigated for low-loss polymer optical waveguide devices. These oligomers are designed to achieve low birefringence and were synthesized by the reaction of 4,4′-(hexafluoroisopropylidene)diphenol with an excess decafluorobenzophenone, followed by reaction with (phenylethynyl)phenol or ethynylphenol. The molecular weights (Mns) and polydispersities of the oligomers determined by GPC with polystyrene standard are in the range of 6600–8500 g/mol and 1.79–2.04, respectively. By spin coating and thermal crosslinking, the polymer solutions easily provide the good optical quality thin films. The cured films show good chemical resistance and high thermal stability up to 460°C under nitrogen. At 1.55 µm wavelength, the refractive index and birefringence of the films show in the range of 1.5104–1.5172 and 0.0078–0.0014, respectively. The propagation loss of the single-mode channel waveguide was measured to be less than 0.5 dB/cm at 1.55 µm. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 2355–2361, 1999

Crosslinkable polymers for optical waveguide devices. II. Fluorinated ether ketone oligomers bearing ethynyl group at the chain end

Fluorinated ether ketone oligomers bearing a crosslinkable ethynyl group at the chain end have been investigated for low-loss polymer optical waveguide devices. These oligomers are designed to achieve low birefringence and were synthesized by the reaction of 4,4′-(hexafluoroisopropylidene)diphenol with an excess decafluorobenzophenone, followed by reaction with (phenylethynyl)phenol or ethynylphenol. The molecular weights (Mns) and polydispersities of the oligomers determined by GPC with polystyrene standard are in the range of 6600–8500 g/mol and 1.79–2.04, respectively. By spin coating and thermal crosslinking, the polymer solutions easily provide the good optical quality thin films. The cured films show good chemical resistance and high thermal stability up to 460°C under nitrogen. At 1.55 µm wavelength, the refractive index and birefringence of the films show in the range of 1.5104–1.5172 and 0.0078–0.0014, respectively. The propagation loss of the single-mode channel waveguide was measured to be less than 0.5 dB/cm at 1.55 µm. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 2355–2361, 1999

Crosslinkable fluorinated poly(arylene ethers) bearing phenyl ethynyl moiety for low-loss polymer optical waveguide devices

Crosslinkable fluorinated poly(arylene ethers) bearing phenyl ethynyl moiety for low-loss polymer optical waveguide devices