Lionel C. Kimerling

Athermal Silicon Ring Resonators

We demonstrate athermal amorphous Si (a-Si) ring resonators using a top polymer cladding. We observe near complete thermo-optic (TO) compensation, and a temperature dependent resonant wavelength shift (TDWS) as low as 0.5 pm/K is achieved.

Light up the Future of Silicon Microprocessors

United States. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Electronic and Photonic Integrated Circuit (EPIC) Program

Large Diameter, CMOS-Manufacturable Photodetectors for over 2 Gbps Polymer Optical Fiber Applications

Lateral p-i-n photodetectors were fabricated in a CMOS-compatible process. The 200µm diameter devices had a bandwidth of 1.7 GHz, suitable for 2.5 Gbps operation. An unexpected illumination intensity dependance was observed and confirmed by simulation.

Anomalous Birefringence in Annealed Si-Rich Silicon Dioxide

We have observed a large birefringence of 0.039 in annealed Si-rich SiO2 thin films deposited on silica substrates. The birefringence is correlated with the light emission and structural properties of the films.

Broadband athermal waveguides and devices for datacom and telecom applications

The high temperature sensitivity of silicon material limits the applications of silicon-based micro-ring resonators in integrated photonics. To realize a low but broadband temperature-dependence-wavelength-shift (TDWS) micro-ring resonator, designing a broadband athermal waveguide becomes a significant task. In this work, we propose a broadband athermal waveguide which shows a low effective thermos-optical coefficient (TOC) of ±1×10-6/K at 1400 nm to 1700 nm. The proposed waveguide shows low-loss performance of 0.01 dB/cm and stable broadband-athermal ability when it’s applied in micro-ring resonators, and the optical loss of micro-ring resonator with a radius of 100 μm using this waveguide is 0.02 dB/cm.

Two-octave dispersion flattening with five zero-dispersion wavelengths in the mid-IR

Group-velocity dispersion (GVD) engineering is vital to many nonlinear optical phenomena and has been widely used for nonlinear optics. Aiming at different applications, one need to control and engineer the sign, value, slope of dispersion and the number of zero-dispersion wavelengths (ZDWs). In this work, we demonstrate generation of 5 ZDWs in a new type of bilayer waveguides. Outer layer of this waveguide can be formed by depositing without etching. Material combinations are Ge23Sb7S70 (n≈2.2) and Ge28Sb12Se60 (n≈2.6). In this waveguide, an extremely wideband-low and flat dispersion can be obtained from 2.6 to 15.5 μm (2.6 octaves).

Agile generation of microresonator-based frequency combs without pump detuning and local temperature controlling

Microresonator-based frequency combs have attracted a great deal of attention in recent years. Traditional generation scheme could be slow due to the operation of tunable lasers and thermal effects. In some spectral ranges, it is also difficult to find a tunable laser with a certain tuning range. In this paper, we propose a fast and simple method for Kerr comb generation without laser detuning and local cooling. In this way, the generation time can be reduced to tens of nanoseconds, three orders of magnitude faster.

Multipath Trapping Dynamics of Nanoparticles towards an Integrated Silicon Slot Waveguide

We study the trapping dynamics of a nanoparticle near a silicon slot waveguide. It is shown for the first time that a nanoparticle can go along different paths before it becomes trapped. The optical forces originating from different parts of an optical mode compete with each other during particle transport, forming a complicated particle trajectory and particularly a critical area where particle transport becomes unstable. Brownian motion is simulated for 50-nm and 100-nm nanoparticles, and the induced instability is analyzed.

Active Ge Based Devices for Silicon Photonics

Some of the crucial building blocks for Si photonics are high performance photodetectors, modulators, and efficient light sources. High quality Ge epitaxial films on Si have opened new possibilities for high performance CMOS compatible devices.

Optical Transmission in Horizontal Slot Waveguides

Horizontal single and multiple slot waveguides and ring resonators consisting of deposited amorphous silicon and silicon dioxide are demonstrated. Their waveguide propagation loss, optical confinement, and thermo-optic effects are studied.