Silicon-based Photonic Circuits Research Articles

Bright semiconductor single-photon sources pumped by heterogeneously integrated micropillar lasers with electrical injections

The emerging hybrid integrated quantum photonics combines the advantages of different functional components into a single chip to meet the stringent requirements for quantum information processing. Despite the tremendous progress in hybrid integrations of III-V quantum emitters with silicon-based photonic circuits and superconducting single-photon detectors, on-chip optical excitations of quantum emitters via miniaturized lasers towards single-photon sources (SPSs) with low power consumptions, small device footprints, and excellent coherence properties is highly desirable yet illusive. In this work, we present realizations of bright semiconductor SPSs heterogeneously integrated with on-chip electrically-injected microlasers. Different from previous one-by-one transfer printing technique implemented in hybrid quantum dot (QD) photonic devices, multiple deterministically coupled QD-circular Bragg Grating (CBG) SPSs were integrated with electrically-injected micropillar lasers at one time via a potentially scalable transfer printing process assisted by the wide-field photoluminescence (PL) imaging technique. Optically pumped by electrically-injected microlasers, pure single photons are generated with a high-brightness of a count rate of 3.8 M/s and an extraction efficiency of 25.44%. Such a high-brightness is due to the enhancement by the cavity mode of the CBG, which is confirmed by a Purcell factor of 2.5. Our work provides a powerful tool for advancing hybrid integrated quantum photonics in general and boosts the developments for realizing highly-compact, energy-efficient and coherent SPSs in particular.

Ultra-low-power second-order nonlinear optics on a chip

Second-order nonlinear optical processes convert light from one wavelength to another and generate quantum entanglement. Creating chip-scale devices to efficiently control these interactions greatly increases the reach of photonics. Existing silicon-based photonic circuits utilize the third-order optical nonlinearity, but an analogous integrated platform for second-order nonlinear optics remains an outstanding challenge. Here we demonstrate efficient frequency doubling and parametric oscillation with a threshold of tens of micro-watts in an integrated thin-film lithium niobate photonic circuit. We achieve degenerate and non-degenerate operation of the parametric oscillator at room temperature and tune its emission over one terahertz by varying the pump frequency by hundreds of megahertz. Finally, we observe cascaded second-order processes that result in parametric oscillation. These resonant second-order nonlinear circuits will form a crucial part of the emerging nonlinear and quantum photonics platforms.

Multipolar second-harmonic generation by Mie-resonant dielectric nanoparticles

By combining analytical and numerical approaches, we study resonantly enhanced second-harmonic generation (SHG) by individual high-index dielectric nanoparticles made of centrosymmetric materials. Considering both bulk and surface nonlinearities, we describe second-harmonic nonlinear scattering from a silicon nanoparticle optically excited in the vicinity of the magnetic and electric dipolar resonances. We discuss the contributions of different nonlinear sources, and the effect of the low-order optical Mie modes on the characteristics of the generated far-field. We demonstrate that the multipolar expansion of the radiated field is dominated by dipolar and quadrupolar modes (two axially symmetric electric quadrupoles, an electric dipole, and a magnetic quadrupole), and the interference of these modes can ensure directivity of the nonlinear scattering. The developed multipolar analysis can be instructive for interpreting the far-field measurements of the nonlinear scattering, and it provides prospective insights into a design of CMOS-compatible nonlinear nanoantennas fully integrated with silicon-based photonic circuits, as well as new methods of nonlinear diagnostics.

Infra-Red Photo-Detectors Monolithically Integrated with Silicon-Based Photonic Circuits

AbstractThe development of monolithic silicon photonic systems has been the subject of intense research over the last decade. In addition to passive waveguiding structures suitable for DWDM applications, integration of electrical and optical functionality has yielded devices with the ability to dynamically attenuate, switch and modulate optical signals. Despite this significant progress, much higher levels of integration and increased functionality are required if silicon is to dominate as a substrate for photonic circuit fabrication as it does in the microelectronic industry. In particular, there exists a requirement for efficient silicon-based optical sources and detectors which are compatible with wavelengths of 1.3 and 1.5μm. While a great deal of work has focussed on the development of silicon-based optical sources, there has been less concentrated effort on the development of a simple, easily integrated detector technology. We describe here the design, fabrication and characterization of a wholly monolithic silicon waveguide optical detector, utilizing an integrated p+-u-n+ diode, which has significant response to optical signals at the communication wavelength of 1.54μm. Measurable infra-red response is induced via the controlled introduction of mid-gap electronic levels within the rib waveguide. This approach is completely compatible with ULSI fabrication. The requirement for the detectors to be integrated with a rib waveguide and hence the guarantee of a long optical signal-device interaction, results in electrical signals of several μAs, even for deep-levels with a small optical absorption cross-section. Further, the rise and fall time of the detectors is compatible with current monolithic, silicon device based, optical switching and modulation operating in the MHz regime. These results suggest that these detectors offer a cost-effective route to signal monitoring in integrated photonic circuits.