M. S. Ünlü

Optical sensing of biomolecules using microring resonators

A biosensor application of vertically coupled glass microring resonators with Q/spl sim/12 000 is introduced. Using balanced photodetection, very high signal to noise ratios, and thus high sensitivity to refractive index changes (limit of detection of 1.8/spl times/10/sup -5/ refractive index units), are achieved. Ellipsometry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results indicate successful modification of biosensor surfaces. Experimental data obtained separately for a bulk change of refractive index of the medium and for avidin-biotin binding on the ring surface are reported. Excellent repeatability and close-to-complete surface regeneration after binding are experimentally demonstrated.

Resonant cavity-enhanced (RCE) photodetectors

The photosensitivity characteristics of resonant cavity-enhanced (RCE) photodetectors are investigated. The photodetectors were formed by integrating the active absorption region into a resonant cavity composed of top and bottom (buried) mirrors. A general expression for quantum efficiency for RCE photodetectors was derived taking the external losses into account. Drastic enhancement in quantum efficiency is demonstrated at resonant wavelengths for a high quality factor Q cavity with a very thin absorption layer. An improvement by a factor of four in the bandwidth-efficiency product for RCE p-i-n detectors is predicted. Molecular beam epitaxy grown RCE-heterojunction phototransistors (RCE-HPT) were fabricated and measured demonstrating good agreement between experiment and theory. >

High spatial resolution subsurface microscopy

We present a high-spatial-resolution subsurface microscopy technique that significantly increases the numerical aperture of a microscope without introducing an additional spherical aberration. Consequently, the diffraction-limited spatial resolution is improved beyond the limit of standard subsurface microscopy. By realizing a numerical aperture of 3.4, we experimentally demonstrate a lateral spatial resolution of better than 0.23 μm in subsurface inspection of Si integrated circuits at near infrared wavelengths.

High-speed resonant cavity enhanced Ge photodetectors on reflecting Si substrates for 1550-nm operation

We have designed and fabricated high-speed resonant cavity enhanced germanium (Ge) Schottky photodetectors on a silicon-on-insulator substrate. These back-illuminated detectors have demonstrated 3-dB bandwidths of more than 12 GHz at 3-V reverse bias and a peak quantum efficiency of 59% (R=0.73 A/W) at the resonant wavelength of /spl sim/1540 nm. Time domain measurements of our Ge photodetectors with diameters of up to 48 /spl mu/m show transit-time limited impulse responses corresponding to bandwidths of at least 6.7 GHz, making these detectors compatible with 10-Gb/s data communication systems.

Emitter ballasting resistor design for, and current handling capability of AlGaAs/GaAs power heterojunction bipolar transistors

A systematic investigation of the emitter ballasting resistor for power heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) is presented. The current handling capability of power HBTs is found to improve with ballasting resistance. An equation for the optimal ballasting resistance is presented, where the effects of thermal conductivity of the substrate material and the temperature coefficient of the ballasting resistor are taken into account. Current levels of 400 to 800 mA/mm of emitter periphery at case temperatures of 25 to -80 degrees C for power AlGaAs/GaAs HBTs have been obtained using an on-chip lightly doped GaAs emitter ballasting resistor. Device temperature has been measured using both an infrared microradiometer and temperature-sensitive electrical parameters. Steady-state and transient thermal modeling are also performed. Although the measured temperature is spatially nonuniform, the modeling results show that such nonuniformities would occur for a uniform current distribution, as would be expected for an HBT with emitter ballasting resistors. >

Micro-Raman measurement of bending stresses in micromachined silicon flexures

Micron-scale characterization of mechanical stresses is essential for the successful design and operation of many micromachined devices. Here we report the use of Raman spectroscopy to measure the bending stresses in deep reactive-ion etched silicon flexures with a stress resolution of /spl sim/10 MPa and spatial resolution of /spl sim/1 /spl mu/m. The accuracy of the technique, as assessed by comparison to analytical and finite-element models of the deformation, is conservatively estimated to be 25 MPa. Implications for the use of this technique in microsystems design are discussed.

High-speed resonant-cavity-enhanced silicon photodetectors on reflecting silicon-on-insulator substrates

We report a resonant-cavity-enhanced Si photodetector fabricated on a reflecting silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate. The substrate incorporates a two period distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) fabricated using a commercially available double-SOI process. The buried DBR provides a 90% reflecting surface. The resonant-cavity-enhanced Si photodetectors have 40% quantum efficiency at 860 nm and response time of 29 ps. These devices are suitable for 10-Gb/s data communications.

Intensity dependence of photoluminescence in GaN thin films

We report the intensity dependence of band‐gap and midgap photoluminescence in GaN films grown by electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) microwave plasma‐assisted molecular beam epitaxy. We find that the band‐gap luminescence depends linearly while the midgap luminescence has a nonlinear dependence on the incident light intensity. These data were compared with a simple recombination model which assumes a density of recombination centers 2.2 eV below the conduction band edge. The concentration of these centers is higher in films grown at higher microwave power in the ECR plasma.

Toward nanometer-scale resolution in fluorescence microscopy using spectral self-interference

We introduce a new fluorescence microscopy technique that maps the axial position of a fluorophore with subnanometer precision. The interference of the emission of fluorophores in proximity to a reflecting surface results in fringes in the fluorescence spectrum that provide a unique signature of the axial position of the fluorophore. The nanometer sensitivity is demonstrated by measuring the height of a fluorescein monolayer covering a 12-nm step etched in silicon dioxide. In addition, the separation between fluorophores attached to the top or the bottom layer in a lipid bilayer film is determined. We further discuss extension of this microscopy technique to provide resolution of multiple layers spaced as closely as 10 nm for sparse systems.

High-throughput detection and sizing of individual low-index nanoparticles and viruses for pathogen identification.

Rapid, chip-scale, and cost-effective single particle detection of biological agents is of great importance to human health and national security. We report real-time, high-throughput detection and sizing of individual, low-index polystyrene nanoparticles and H1N1 virus. Our widefield, common path interferometer detects nanoparticles and viruses over a very large sensing area, orders of magnitude larger than competing techniques. We demonstrate nanoparticle detection and sizing down to 70 nm in diameter. We clearly size discriminate nanoparticles with diameters of 70, 100, 150, and 200 nm. We also demonstrate detection and size characterization of hundreds of individual H1N1 viruses in a single experiment.