A numerical Kramers-Kronig analysis is used to predict the refractive-index perturbations produced in crystalline silicon by applied electric fields or by charge carriers. Results are obtained over the 1.0-2.0 \mu m optical wavelength range. The analysis makes use of experimental electroabsorption spectra and impurity-doping spectra taken from the literature. For electrorefraction at the indirect gap, we find \Delta n = 1.3 \times 10^{5} at \lambda = 1.07 \mu m when E = 10^{5} V/cm, while the Kerr effect gives \Delta n = 10^{-6} at that field strength. The charge-carrier effects are larger, and a depletion or injection of 1018carriers/cm3produces an index change of \pm1.5 \times 10^{-3} at \lambda = 1.3 \mu m.

Electrooptical effects in silicon

The pace of the development of silicon photonics has quickened since 2004 due to investment by industry and government. Commercial state-of-the-art CMOS silicon-on-insulator (SOI) foundries are now being utilized in a crucial test of 1.55-mum monolithic optoelectronic (OE) integration, a test sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The preliminary results indicate that the silicon photonics are truly CMOS compatible. RD however, lasing has not yet been attained. The new paradigm for the Si-based photonic and optoelectric integrated circuits is that these chip-scale networks, when suitably designed, will operate at a wavelength anywhere within the broad spectral range of 1.2-100 mum, with cryocooling needed in some cases

The Past, Present, and Future of Silicon Photonics

Silicon has long been the optimal material for electronics, but it is only relatively recently that it has been considered as a material option for photonics1. One of the key limitations for using silicon as a photonic material has been the relatively low speed of silicon optical modulators compared to those fabricated from III–V semiconductor compounds2,3,4,5,6 and/or electro-optic materials such as lithium niobate7,8,9. To date, the fastest silicon-waveguide-based optical modulator that has been demonstrated experimentally has a modulation frequency of only ∼20 MHz (refs 10, 11), although it has been predicted theoretically that a ∼1-GHz modulation frequency might be achievable in some device structures12,13. Here we describe an approach based on a metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) capacitor structure embedded in a silicon waveguide that can produce high-speed optical phase modulation: we demonstrate an all-silicon optical modulator with a modulation bandwidth exceeding 1 GHz. As this technology is compatible with conventional complementary MOS (CMOS) processing, monolithic integration of the silicon modulator with advanced electronics on a single silicon substrate becomes possible.

A high-speed silicon optical modulator based on a metal–oxide–semiconductor capacitor

The silicon chip has been the mainstay of the electronics industry for the last 40 years and has revolutionized the way the world operates. Today, a silicon chip the size of a fingernail contains nearly 1 billion transistors and has the computing power that only a decade ago would take up an entire room of servers. As the relentless pursuit of Moore's law continues, and Internet-based communication continues to grow, the bandwidth demands needed to feed these devices will continue to increase and push the limits of copper-based signaling technologies. These signaling limitations will necessitate optical-based solutions. However, any optical solution must be based on low-cost technologies if it is to be applied to the mass market. Silicon photonics, mainly based on SOI technology, has recently attracted a great deal of attention. Recent advances and breakthroughs in silicon photonic device performance have shown that silicon can be considered a material onto which one can build optical devices. While significant efforts are needed to improve device performance and commercialize these technologies, progress is moving at a rapid rate. More research in the area of integration, both photonic and electronic, is needed. The future is looking bright. Silicon photonics could provide low-cost opto-electronic solutions for applications ranging from telecommunications down to chip-to-chip interconnects, as well as emerging areas such as optical sensing technology and biomedical applications. The ability to utilize existing CMOS infrastructure and manufacture these silicon photonic devices in the same facilities that today produce electronics could enable low-cost optical devices, and in the future, revolutionize optical communications

http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/iel5/6668/34347/01638290.pdf

Silicon photonics

Silicon lasers have long been a goal for semiconductor scientists, and a number of important breakthroughs in the past decade have focused attention on silicon as a photonic platform. Here we review the most recent progress in this field, including low-threshold silicon Raman lasers with racetrack ring resonator cavities, the first germanium-on-silicon lasers operating at room temperature, and hybrid silicon microring and microdisk lasers. The fundamentals of carrier transition physics in crystalline silicon are discussed briefly. The basics of several important approaches for creating lasers on silicon are explained, and the challenges and opportunities associated with these approaches are discussed. Silicon lasers have long been a goal for semiconductor scientists. This Progress Article reviews the most recent developments in this field, including silicon Raman lasers, the first germanium-on-silicon lasers operating at room temperature, and hybrid silicon microring and microdisk lasers. Challenges and opportunities for the present approaches are also discussed.

/pdf/recent-progress-in-lasers-on-silicon-3w64r65a91.pdf

Recent progress in lasers on silicon

End-coupled planar and channel waveguides at 1.3 μm have been demonstrated in single-crystal Si layers grown epitaxially on heavily doped Si substrates, and an optical power divider consisting of intersecting channels was designed and fabricated. Optical switches in Si based on electrooptic, acoustooptic, and optical-injection mechanisms are described. The advantages of all-silicon integrated optical components are discussed.

J. Larenzo

Papers

All-silicon active and passive guided-wave components for λ = 1.3 and 1.6 µm

J. Larenzo

Papers

All-silicon active and passive guided-wave components for &#955; = 1.3 and 1.6 &#181;m

All-silicon active and passive guided-wave components for λ = 1.3 and 1.6 µm