Jacob B. Khurgin

How to deal with the loss in plasmonics and metamaterials.

Metal losses affect the performance of every plasmonic or metamaterial structure; dealing with them will determine the degree to which these structures will find practical applications.

Locally Oxidized Silicon Surface-Plasmon Schottky Detector for Telecom Regime

We experimentally demonstrate an on-chip nanoscale silicon surface-plasmon Schottky photodetector based on internal photoemission process and operating at telecom wavelengths. The device is fabricated using a self-aligned approach of local-oxidation of silicon (LOCOS) on silicon on insulator substrate, which provides compatibility with standard complementary metal-oxide semiconductor technology and enables the realization of the photodetector and low-loss bus photonic waveguide at the same fabrication step. Additionally, LOCOS technique allows avoiding lateral misalignment between the silicon surface and the metal layer to form a nanoscale Schottky contact. The fabricated devices showed enhanced detection capability for shorter wavelengths that is attributed to increased probability of the internal photoemission process. We found the responsivity of the nanodetector to be 0.25 and 13.3 mA/W for incident optical wavelengths of 1.55 and 1.31 μm, respectively. The presented device can be integrated with other nanophotonic and nanoplasmonic structures for the realization of monolithic opto-electronic circuitry on-chip.

Phased-array cancellation of nonlinear FWM in coherent OFDM dispersive multi-span links

We develop an analytic model of Coherent Optical Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) propagation and detection over multi-span long-haul fiber links, comprehensively and rigorously analyzing the impairments due the combined effects of FWM, Dispersion and ASE noise. Consistent with prior work of Innoe and Schadt in the WDM context, our new closed-form expressions for the total FWM received power fluctuations in the wake of dispersive phase mismatch in OFDM transmission, indicate that the FWM contributions of the multitude of spans build-up on a phased-array basis. For particular ultra-long haul link designs, the effectiveness of dispersion in reducing FWM is far greater than previously assumed in OFDM system analysis. The key is having the dominant FWM intermodulation products due to the multiple spans, destructively interfere, mutually cancelling their FWM intermodulation products, analogous to operating at the null of a phased-array antenna system. By applying the new analysis tools, this mode of effectively mitigating the FWM impairment, is shown under specific dispersion and spectral management conditions, to substantially suppress the FWM power fluctuations. Accounting for the phased-array concept and applying the compact OFDM design formulas developed here, we analyzed system performance of a 40 Gbps coherent OFDM system, over standard G.652 fiber, with cyclic prefix based electronic dispersion compensation but no optical compensation along the link. The transmission range for 10-3 target BER is almost tripled from 2560 km to 6960 km, relative to a reference system performing optical dispersion compensation in every span (ideally accounting for FWM and ASE noise and the cyclic prefix overhead, but excluding additional impairments).

Practicable enhancement of spontaneous emission using surface plasmons

The authors develop a rigorous theory of the enhancement of spontaneous emission from a light emitting device via coupling the radiant energy in and out of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) on the metal-dielectric interface. Using the GaN∕Ag system as an example, the authors show that using SPP pays off only for emitters that have a low luminescence efficiency.

Expanding the bandwidth of slow-light photonic devices based on coupled resonators

It is shown theoretically that canceling third-order dispersion can substantially increase the useful bandwidths of linear and nonlinear optical devices based on slow propagation of light. Cancellation on both global and local scales can be achieved by combination of the ring-based coupled resonator lines and all-pass optical filters.

Slow light in various media: a tutorial

I consider the physical basics of slow light propagation in atomic media, photonic structures, and optical fibers. I show similarities and differences between all of the above media and develop set of criteria that are then used to compare different media. Special attention is given to dispersion of group velocity and loss, which are shown to limit the bandwidth and delay capacity of all the slow light schemes.

Wide-bandwidth continuously tunable optical delay line using silicon microring resonators

We demonstrate a distortion free tunable optical delay as long as 135 ps with a 10 GHz bandwidth using thermally tuned silicon microring resonators in the novel balanced configuration. The device is simple, easy to control and compact measuring only 30 µm wide by 250 µm long.

Practical enhancement of photoluminescence by metal nanoparticles

We develop a simple yet rigorous theory of the photoluminescence (PL) enhancement in the vicinity of metal nanoparticles. The enhancement takes place during both optical excitation and emission. The strong dependence on the nanoparticle size enables optimization for maximum PL efficiency. Using the example of InGaN quantum dots (QDs) positioned near Ag nanospheres embedded in GaN, we show that strong enhancement can be obtained only for those QDs, atoms, or molecules that are originally inefficient in absorbing as well as in emitting optical energy. We then discuss practical implications for sensor technology.

Waveguide based compact silicon Schottky photodetector with enhanced responsivity in the telecom spectral band

We experimentally demonstrate an on-chip compact and simple to fabricate silicon Schottky photodetector for telecom wavelengths operating on the basis of internal photoemission process. The device is realized using CMOS compatible approach of local-oxidation of silicon, which enables the realization of the photodetector and low-loss bus photonic waveguide at the same fabrication step. The photodetector demonstrates enhanced internal responsivity of 12.5mA/W for operation wavelength of 1.55µm corresponding to an internal quantum efficiency of 1%, about two orders of magnitude higher than our previously demonstrated results [22]. We attribute this improved detection efficiency to the presence of surface roughness at the boundary between the materials forming the Schottky contact. The combination of enhanced quantum efficiency together with a simple fabrication process provides a promising platform for the realization of all silicon photodetectors and their integration with other nanophotonic and nanoplasmonic structures towards the construction of monolithic silicon opto-electronic circuitry on-chip.

Optically pumped four-level infrared laser based on intersubband transitions in multiple quantum wells: feasibility study

The feasibility of optically pumped infrared laser based on the intersubband transitions in multiple quantum wells is studied theoretically. The criteria for population inversion and efficient lasing operations are established. A system consisting of a superlattice with four quantum wells per period is proposed and shown to satisfy the criteria. The relaxation processes are investigated, giving the electron-phonon interaction a rigorous theoretical treatment. It is shown that in the proposed structure, optical gain in excess of 300 cm/sup -1/ can be realized under practical pumping conditions. Modification and optimization of the proposed laser are discussed. >