DFG Research Group
In 2006 the DFG (German Research Foundation) established the Research Group
“Active and tunable micro-photonic systems on the basis of Silicon-on-Insulator (SOI)”.
Three institutes of the Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) and one institute of the Berlin University of Technology jointly applied this research group and now cooperate closely within its scope.
Participants of the DFG Research Group:
- Institute of “Optical and Electronic Materials” (TUHH),
- Institute of “Optical Communication Technology“ (TUHH),
- Institute of “Micro Systems Technology“ (TUHH) and
- Institute of “Microwave Engineering - Photonics“ (TU Berlin) an.
The Institute of Optical and Electronic Materials focuses on the projects
- Electro-optic functionalization and modulation of micro-photonic silicon-on-insulator structures (E1) and
- Highly- and non-dispersive periodic and aperiodic micro-photonic structures in silicon-on-insulator (E2).
Overall Goal of the DFG Research Group:
The compatibility of silicon-on-insulator photonics with the foundry processes of microelectronics opens the perspective of achieving a high integration density of electronic and photonic components on a single chip. The high index contrast of SOI waveguides promises shortest bending radii and compact components with low waveguide attenuation of less than 0.1 dB/cm. Most important material properties are the wide transparency spectrum ranging from the near infrared deep into the mid infrared and the excellent suitability for photonic crystals structures. Recent fascinating breakthroughs indicate that the SOI technology will establish itself as a platform for integrated optics. Within the scope of the research group efficient optical amplifiers and lasers on the basis of stimulated Raman scattering should be realised. Furthermore, possibilities of tuning and modulation with micro mechanical means as well as effects based on organic and inorganic electro optic cladding materials will be investigated, realized and characterized. Important building blocks such as Bragg gratings, mirrors and long periodic gratings are developed and fundamental applications such as programmable resonators, tuneable dispersion compensators and pulse shapers shall be demonstrated.
Projekt „Electro-optical Functionalization and Modulation of Microphotonic Silicon-on-Insulator Structures“ (E1)
This project aims to functionalize novel SOI based waveguiding microphotonic components for broadband electro optical tuning and optical detection. New organic EO-materials with extremely high electro optic susceptibilities of up to several hundred pm/V are used. Such susceptibilities are one order of magnitude larger than those of LiNbO3 (31 pm/V) and two orders of magnitude larger than those of other inorganic EO-materials. Ultra small and ultra fast components, such as photonic switches, tuneable add/drop filter or delay and dispersion compensating elements in wavelength division multiplex systems can be modulated with frequencies from GHz to THz and thus are expected to overcome the interconnect bottleneck in future computer generations.
Dipl._Ing. Jan Hampe is working on the project E1
(see also: Hybride Silizium-Polymer-Nanophotonik)
Project “Highly- and non-dispersive periodic and aperiodic micro-photonic structures in silicon-on-insulator” (E2)
This projects aims at realizing and characterizing micro photonic SOI based photonic crystal (PhC) waveguides with tuneable and adjustable time delay between 0 and 1ns as a basis for dispersion less optical delay lines and amplifiers, as well as realizing dispersion in the range of +/-2000 ps/nm to compensate chromatic fibre dispersion. Such compact components are novel and of great interest for high data rate wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) systems. Compared to existing solutions (e.g. dispersion compensating fibres and fibre-Bragg gratings) the structures under investigation are orders of magnitude smaller and therefore for the first time offer the possibility of being integrated. Also periodic and chirped structures are characterized in terms of band width, time delay, dispersion, tuneability as well as reflection and scattering losses. The core of this concept is based on the peculiar properties of defect modes in photonic crystal waveguides. In contrast to conventional waveguides the dispersion can be strongly influenced by adjusting the lattice parameters. The lateral dimension of such components is on the order of only a few 10 micrometers at sub-mm lengths.
Jan Hendrik Wülbern, M. Sc. and Dr. Alexander Petrov are working on project E2.
(see also: Photonic Crystals and Nonlinear Optics)