Xavier Le Roux

High speed and high responsivity germanium photodetector integrated in a Silicon-On-Insulator microwaveguide

Design, fabrication and characterization of germanium on silicon photodetector integrated in SOI waveguide are reported. A responsivity of 1 A/W and a -3 dB bandwidth of 25 GHz under 6 V bias have been obtained at lambda=1.55 mum.

Trait-based approaches for understanding microbial biodiversity and ecosystem functioning

In ecology, biodiversity-ecosystem functioning (BEF) research has seen a shift in perspective from taxonomy to function in the last two decades, with successful application of trait-based approaches. This shift offers opportunities for a deeper mechanistic understanding of the role of biodiversity in maintaining multiple ecosystem processes and services. In this paper, we highlight studies that have focused on BEF of microbial communities with an emphasis on integrating trait-based approaches to microbial ecology. In doing so, we explore some of the inherent challenges and opportunities of understanding BEF using microbial systems. For example, microbial biologists characterize communities using gene phylogenies that are often unable to resolve functional traits. Additionally, experimental designs of existing microbial BEF studies are often inadequate to unravel BEF relationships. We argue that combining eco-physiological studies with contemporary molecular tools in a trait-based framework can reinforce our ability to link microbial diversity to ecosystem processes. We conclude that such trait-based approaches are a promising framework to increase the understanding of microbial BEF relationships and thus generating systematic principles in microbial ecology and more generally ecology.

Effects of aboveground grazing on coupling among nitrifier activity, abundance and community structure

The influence of switches in grassland management to or from grazing on the dynamics of nitrifier activity, as well as the abundance of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria, AOB and ammonia-oxidizing archeae, AOA, was analyzed for two years after changing management. Additionally community structure of AOB was surveyed. Four treatments were compared in mesocosms: grazing on previously grazed grassland (G-G); no grazing on ungrazed grassland (U-U); grazing on ungrazed grassland (U-G) and cessation of grazing on grazed grassland (G-U). Nitrifier activity and abundance were always higher for G-G than U-U treatments and AOB community structure differed between these treatments. AOA abundance was in the same range as AOB abundance and followed the same trend. Grazing led to a change in AOB community structure within <5 months and a subsequent (5–12 months) increase in nitrifier activity and abundance. In contrast, cessation of grazing led to a decrease in nitrifier activity and abundance within <5 months and to a later (5–12 months) change in AOB community structure. Activity in G-U and U-G was similar to that in U-U and G-G, respectively, after 12 months. Sequence analysis of 16S rRNA gene clones showed that AOB retrieved from soils fell within the Nitrosospira lineage and percentages of AOB related to known Nitrosospira groups were affected by grazing. These results demonstrate that AOB and AOA respond quickly to changes in management. The selection of nitrifiers adapted to novel environmental conditions was a prerequisite for nitrification enhancement in U-G, whereas nitrification decrease in G-U was likely due to a partial starvation and decrease in the abundance of nitrifiers initially present. The results also suggest that taxonomic affiliation does not fully infer functional traits of AOB.

Optical modulation by carrier depletion in a silicon PIN diode

Experimental results for refractive index variation induced by depletion in a silicon structure integrated in a PIN diode are reported. Thermal effect has been dissociated from the electrical contribution due to carrier density variation induced by a reverse bias voltage. A figure of merit V(pi)L(pi) of 3.1 V.cm has been obtained at 1.55mum. Numerical simulations show a good agreement between experimental and theoretical index variations.

23 GHz Ge/SiGe multiple quantum well electro-absorption modulator

We report on high speed operation of a Ge/SiGe multiple quantum well (MQW) electro-absorption modulator in a waveguide configuration. 23 GHz bandwidth is experimentally demonstrated from a 3 µm wide and 90 µm long Ge/SiGe MQW waveguide. The modulator exhibits a high extinction ratio of more than 10 dB over a wide spectral range. Moreover with a swing voltage of 1 V between 3 and 4 V, an extinction ratio as high as 9 dB can be obtained with a corresponding estimated energy consumption of 108 fJ per bit. This demonstrates the potentiality of Ge/SiGe MQWs as a building block of silicon compatible photonic integrated circuits for short distance energy efficient optical interconnections.

Development and application of a PCR‐denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis tool to study the diversity of Nitrobacter‐like nxrA sequences in soil

A new PCR-denaturing gel gradient electrophoresis (DGGE) tool based on the functional gene nxrA encoding the catalytic subunit of the nitrite oxidoreductase in nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB) has been developed. The first aim was to determine if the primers could target representatives of NOB genera: Nitrococcus and Nitrospira. The primers successfully amplified nxrA gene sequences from Nitrococcus mobilis, but not from Nitrospira marina. The second aim was to develop a PCR-DGGE tool to characterize NOB community structure on the basis of Nitrobacter-like partial nrxA gene sequences (Nb-nxrA). We tested (1) the ability of this tool to discriminate between Nitrobacter strains, and (2) its ability to reveal changes in the community structure of NOB harbouring Nb-nrxA sequences induced by light grazing or intensive grazing in grassland soils. The DGGE profiles clearly differed between the four Nitrobacter strains tested. Differences in the structure of NOB community were revealed between grazing regimes. Phylogenetic analysis of the sequences corresponding to different DGGE bands showed that Nb-nxrA sequences did not group in management-specific clusters. Most of the nxrA sequences obtained from soils differed from nxrA sequences of NOB strains. Along with existing tools for characterizing the community structure of nitrifiers, this new approach is a significant step forward to performing comprehensive studies on nitrification.

Quantum-confined Stark effect measurements in Ge/SiGe quantum-well structures.

We investigate the room-temperature quantum-confined Stark effect in Ge/SiGe multiple quantum wells (MQWs) grown by low-energy plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. The active region is embedded in a p-i-n diode, and absorption spectra at different reverse bias voltages are obtained from optical transmission, photocurrent, and differential transmission measurements. The measurements provide accurate values of the fraction of light absorbed per well of the Ge/SiGe MQWs. Both Stark shift and reduction of exciton absorption peak are observed. Differential transmission indicates that there is no thermal contribution to these effects.

Optical gain in carbon nanotubes

Semiconducting single-wall carbon nanotubes (s-SWNTs) have proved to be promising material for nanophotonics and optoelectronics. Due to the possibility of tuning their direct band gap and controlling excitonic recombinations in the near-infrared wavelength range, s-SWNT can be used as efficient light emitters. We report the first experimental demonstration of room temperature intrinsic optical gain as high as 190 cm−1 at a wavelength of 1.3 μm in a thin film doped with s-SWNT. These results constitute a significant milestone toward the development of laser sources based on carbon nanotubes for future high performance integrated circuits.

Improvement of delay-bandwidth product in photonic crystal slow-light waveguides.

We report new results about the improvement of delay-bandwidth product in photonic crystal slow light waveguides. Previous studies have obtained large delay-bandwidth product at the price of small average group index. It is pointed out here that the radius and the distance between the two boundary rows of holes have a key contribution for delay-bandwidth product. We show the possibility of improving this factor of merit meanwhile maintaining the same group index. We succeed in improving normal delay-bandwidth product from 0.15 to 0.35, keeping at the same time the group index unchanged at high value of 90. This optimization approach may be applicable for previous flat band slow light devices.

Resource pulses can alleviate the biodiversity-invasion relationship in soil microbial communities

The roles of species richness, resource use, and resource availability are central to many hypotheses explaining the diversity-invasion phenomenon but are generally not investigated together. Here, we created a large diversity gradient of soil microbial communities by either assembling communities of pure bacterial strains or removing the diversity of a natural soil. Using data on the resource-use capacities of the soil communities and an invader that were gathered from 71 carbon sources, we quantified the niches available to both constituents by using the metrics community niche and remaining niche available to the invader. A strong positive relationship between species richness and community niche across both experiments indicated the presence of resource complementarity. Moreover, community niche and the remaining niche available to the invader predicted invader abundance well. This suggested that increased competition in communities of higher diversity limits community invasibility and underscored the importance of resource availability as a key mechanism through which diversity hinders invasions. As a proof of principle, we subjected selected invaded communities to a resource pulse, which progressively uncoupled the link between soil microbial diversity and invasion and allowed the invader to rebound after nearly being eliminated in some communities. Our results thus show that (1) resource competition suppresses invasion, (2) biodiversity increases resource competition and decreases invasion through niche preemption, and (3) resource pulses that cannot be fully used, even by diverse communities, are favorable to invasion.