Weiqiang Xie

Silicon and silicon nitride photonic circuits for spectroscopic sensing on-a-chip [Invited]

There is a rapidly growing demand to use silicon and silicon nitride (Si3N4) integrated photonics for sensing applications, ranging from refractive index to spectroscopic sensing. By making use of advanced CMOS technology, complex miniaturized circuits can be easily realized on a large scale and at a low cost covering visible to mid-IR wavelengths. In this paper we present our recent work on the development of silicon and Si3N4-based photonic integrated circuits for various spectroscopic sensing applications. We report our findings on waveguide-based absorption, and Raman and surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy. Finally we report on-chip spectrometers and on-chip broadband light sources covering very near-IR to mid-IR wavelengths to realize fully integrated spectroscopic systems on a chip.

Nanoscale and Single-Dot Patterning of Colloidal Quantum Dots.

Using an optimized lift-off process we develop a technique for both nanoscale and single-dot patterning of colloidal quantum dot films, demonstrating feature sizes down to ~30 nm for uniform films and a yield of 40% for single-dot positioning, which is in good agreement with a newly developed theoretical model. While first of all presenting a unique tool for studying physics of single quantum dots, the process also provides a pathway toward practical quantum dot-based optoelectronic devices.

Low-loss silicon nitride waveguide hybridly integrated with colloidal quantum dots

Silicon nitride waveguides with a monolayer of colloidal quantum dots embedded inside were fabricated using a low-temperature deposition process and an optimized dry etching step for the composite layers. We experimentally demonstrated the luminescence of the embedded quantum dots is preserved and the loss of these hybrid waveguide wires is as low as 2.69dB/cm at 900nm wavelength. This hybrid integration of low loss silicon nitride photonics with active emitters offers opportunities for optical sources operating over a very broad wavelength range.

5 x 20 Gb/s heterogeneously integrated III-V on silicon electro-absorption modulator array with arrayed waveguide grating multiplexer

We present a five-channel wavelength division multiplexed modulator module that heterogeneously integrates a 200 GHz channel-spacing silicon arrayed-waveguide grating multiplexer and a 20 Gbps electro-absorption modulator array, showing the potential for 100 Gbps transmission capacity on a 1.5x0.5 mm² footprint.

On‐Chip Integrated Quantum‐Dot–Silicon‐Nitride Microdisk Lasers

Hybrid silicon nitride (SiN)-quantum-dot (QD) microlasers coupled to a passive SiN output waveguide with a 7 µm diameter and a record-low threshold density of 27 µJ cm-2 are demonstrated. A new design and processing scheme offers long-term stability and facilitates in-depth QD material and device characterization, thereby opening new paths for optical communication, sensing, and on-chip cavity quantum optics based on colloidal QDs.

Fabrication and characterization of on-chip silicon nitride microdisk integrated with colloidal quantum dots.

We designed and fabricated free-standing, waveguide-coupled silicon nitride microdisks hybridly integrated with embedded colloidal quantum dots. An efficient coupling of quantum dot emission to resonant disk modes and eventually to the access waveguides is demonstrated. The amount of light coupled out to the access waveguide can be tuned by controlling its dimensions and offset with the disk edge. These devices open up new opportunities for both on-chip silicon nitride integrated photonics and novel optoelectronic devices with quantum dots.

High-Q Photonic Crystal Nanocavities on 300 mm SOI Substrate Fabricated With 193 nm Immersion Lithography

On-chip 1-D photonic crystal nanocavities were designed and fabricated in a 300 mm silicon-on-insulator wafer using a CMOS-compatible process with 193 nm immersion lithography and silicon oxide planarization. High quality factors up to 105 were achieved. By changing geometrical parameters of the cavities, we also demonstrated a wide range of wavelength tunability for the cavity mode, a low insertion loss and excellent agreement with simulation results. These on-chip nanocavities with high quality factors and low modal volume, fabricated through a high-resolution and high-volume CMOS compatible platform open up new opportunities for the photonic integration community.

Modeling the Optical Properties of Low-Cost Colloidal Quantum Dot Functionalized Strip SOI Waveguides

We studied the optical absorption of silicon-on-insulator strip waveguides functionalized by a monolayer of colloidal PbS/CdS core/shell quantum dots. The integration is done by Langmuir-Blodgett deposition, which results in a monolayer of quantum dots (QDs) on the waveguides. Experimental absorption coefficients of QD functionalized strip waveguides range from 10-30 cm-1. These values are about five times larger than the absorption coefficient of QD functionalized planarized waveguides. Using a refractive index as determined from effective medium theory including dipolar coupling between the QDs, we obtain simulated values for the absorption coefficient that are in quantitative agreement with the experimental values and we find that difference with planarized waveguides results from an increased overlap between the QD layer and the guided optical mode in the case of strip waveguides. The modeling of the absorption coefficients of more complex strip waveguides functionalized by colloidal QDs as demonstrated in this study will enable the development and simulation of QD-based photonic devices integrated in silicon.

Low driving voltage band-filling-based III-V-on-silicon electroabsorption modulator

In this paper, a method for realizing a low driving voltage electroabsorption modulator based on the band-filling effect is demonstrated. The InP-based electroabsorption modulator is integrated using divinylsiloxane-bis-benzocyclobutene adhesive bonding on a silicon-on-insulator waveguide platform. When the electroabsorption modulator is forward biased, the band-filling effect occurs, which leads to a blue shift of the exciton absorption spectrum, while the absorption strength stays almost constant. In static operation, an extinction ratio of more than 20 dB with 100 mV bias variation is obtained in an 80 μm long device. In dynamic operation, 1.25 Gbps modulation with a 6.3 dB extinction ratio is obtained using only a 50 mV peak-to-peak driving voltage. The band-filling effect provides a method for realizing ultra-low-driving-voltage electroabsorption modulators.

193nm immersion lithography for high-performance silicon photonic circuits

Large-scale photonics integration has been proposed for many years to support the ever increasing requirements for long and short distance communications as well as package-to-package interconnects. Amongst the various technology options, silicon photonics has imposed itself as a promising candidate, relying on CMOS fabrication processes. While silicon photonics can share the technology platform developed for advanced CMOS devices it has specific dimension control requirements. Though the device dimensions are in the order of the wavelength of light used, the tolerance allowed can be less than 1% for certain devices. Achieving this is a challenging task which requires advanced patterning techniques along with process control. Another challenge is identifying an overlapping process window for diverse pattern densities and orientations on a single layer. In this paper, we present key technology challenges faced when using optical lithography for silicon photonics and advantages of using the 193nm immersion lithography system. We report successful demonstration of a modified 28nm- STI-like patterning platform for silicon photonics in 300mm Silicon-On-Insulator wafer technology. By careful process design, within-wafer CD variation (1sigma) of <1% is achieved for both isolated (waveguides) and dense (grating) patterns in silicon. In addition to dimensional control, low sidewall roughness is a crucial to achieve low scattering loss in the waveguides. With this platform, optical propagation loss as low as ~0.7 dB/cm is achieved for high-confinement single mode waveguides (450x220nm). This is an improvement of >20 % from the best propagation loss reported for this cross-section fabricated using e-beam lithography. By using a single-mode low-confinement waveguide geometry the loss is further reduced to ~0.12 dB/cm. Secondly, we present improvement in within-device phase error in wavelength selective devices, a critical parameter which is a direct measure of line-width uniformity improvement due to the 193nm immersion system. In addition to these superior device performances, the platform opens scenarios for designing new device concepts using sub-wavelength features. By taking advantage of this, we demonstrate a cost-effective robust single-etch sub-wavelength structure based fiber-chip coupler with a coupling efficiency of 40 % and high-quality (1.1×105) factor wavelength filters. These demonstrations on the 193nm immersion lithography show superior performance both in terms of dimensional uniformity and device functionality compared to 248nm- or standard 193nmbased patterning in high-volume manufacture platform. Furthermore, using the wafer and patterning technology similar to advanced CMOS technology brings silicon photonics closer toward an integrated optical interconnect.