Ultra-small, low-power, all-optical switching and memory elements, such as all-optical flip-flops, as well as photonic integrated circuits of many such elements, are in great demand for all-optical signal buffering, switching and processing. Silicon-on-insulator is considered to be a promising platform to accommodate such photonic circuits in large-scale configurations. Through heterogeneous integration of InP membranes onto silicon-on-insulator, a single microdisk laser with a diameter of 7.5 µm, coupled to a silicon-on-insulator wire waveguide, is demonstrated here as an all-optical flip-flop working in a continuous-wave regime with an electrical power consumption of a few milliwatts, allowing switching in 60 ps with 1.8 fJ optical energy. The total power consumption and the device size are, to the best of our knowledge, the smallest reported to date at telecom wavelengths. This is also the only electrically pumped, all-optical flip-flop on silicon built upon complementary metal-oxide semiconductor technology. Scientists demonstrate that a single 7.5-μm-diameter microdisk laser coupled to a silicon-on-insulator wire waveguide can work as an all-optical flip-flop memory. Under a continuous bias of 3.5 mA, flip-flop operation is demonstrated using optical triggering pulses of 1.8 fJ and with a switching time of 60 ps. This device is attractive for on-chip all-optical signal buffering, switching, and processing.

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An ultra-small, low power all-optical flip-flop memory on a silicon chip

The remarkable achievements in the area of integrated optical memories and optical random access memories (RAMs) together with the rapid adoption of optical interconnects in the Datacom and Computercom industries introduce a new perspective for information storage directly in the optical domain, enabling fast access times, increased bandwidth and transparent cooperation with optical interconnect lines. This article reviews state-of-the-art integrated optical memory technologies and optical RAM cell demonstrations describing the physical mechanisms of several key devices along with their performance metrics in terms of their energy, speed and footprint. Novel applications are outlined, concluding with the scaling challenges to be addressed toward allowing light to serve as both a data-carrying and data-storage medium.

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Optical RAM and integrated optical memories: a survey

We demonstrate analytical frequency-domain transfer function expressions for an optical random access memory (RAM) cell that employs two SOA-based ON/OFF switches and two coupled SOA-MZI gates forming an optical flip-flop. Our theoretical model relies on first-order perturbation theory approximations applied for the first time to coupled optical switching structures, resulting to an optical RAM cell frequency response that allows for a qualitative and quantitative analysis of optical RAM memory speed and performance characteristics and their dependence on certain RAM cell device parameters. We show that the transfer function of an optical RAM cell and its incorporated flip-flop device exhibits periodic resonance frequencies resembling the behavior of optical ring resonator configurations. Its free spectral range is mainly dictated by the length of the waveguide that enables the coupling of the two SOA-MZI gates, yielding this coupling length as the dominant memory speed determining factor. The obtained results are in close agreement with experimental observations, demonstrating that optimized RAM cell designs with waveguide coupling lengths lower than 5 mm can enable RAM operation at memory speeds well beyond 40 GHz.

Memory Speed Analysis of Optical RAM and Optical Flip-Flop Circuits Based on Coupled SOA-MZI Gates

In this paper, the bifurcation behavior of light in the PANDA ring resonator is investigated using the signal flow graph (SFG) method, where the optical transfer function for the through and drop ports of the PANDA Vernier system are derived. The optical nonlinear phenomena, such as bistability, Ikeda instability, and dynamics of light in the silicon-on-insulator (SOI) PANDA ring resonator with four couplers are studied. The transmission curves for bistability and instability as a function of the resonant mode numbers and coupling coefficients for the coupler are derived by the SFG method and simulated. The proposed system has an advantage as no optical pumping component is required. Simulated results show that closed-loop bistable switching can be generated and achieved by varying mode resonant numbers in the SOI-PANDA Vernier resonator, where a smooth and closed-loop bistable switching with low relative output/input power can be obtained and realized. The minimum through-port switching time of 1.1 ps for resonant mode numbers of 5;4;4 and minimum drop port switching time of 1.96 ps for resonant mode numbers of 9;7;7 of the PANDA Vernier resonator are achieved, which makes the PANDA Vernier resonator an operative component for optical applications, such as optical signal processing and a fast switching key in photonics integrated circuits.

Ultrafast all-optical switching using signal flow graph for PANDA resonator.

In this paper, we demonstrate a novel RAM cell based only on three traveling waveguide semiconductor optical amplifier-cross gain modulation (SOA-XGM) switches. The RAM cell features wavelength diversity in the incoming bit signals and provides Read/Write operation capability with true random access exclusively in the optical domain. Two of the SOA-XGM switches are coupled together through an 70/30 coupler to form an asynchronous flip-flop, which serves as the memory unit. Random access to the memory unit is granted by a third SOA-ON/OFF switch and all three SOAs together form the proposed RAM cell. Proof-of-principle operation is experimentally demonstrated at 8 Mb/s using commercial fiber-pigtailed components. The distinctive simplicity of the proposed RAM cell architecture suggests reduced footprint. The proposed flip-flop layout holds all the credentials for reaching multi-Gb/s operational speeds, if photonic integration technologies are employed to obtain wavelength-scale waveguides and ultrashort coupling lengths. This is numerically confirmed for 10 Gb/s using a simulation model based on the transfer matrix method and a wideband steady-state material gain coefficient.

Optical RAM and Flip-Flops Using Bit-Input Wavelength Diversity and SOA-XGM Switches

The all-optical response of a semiconductor ring laser (SRL) to two optical injections is characterized. Once the lasing direction is locked by one optical injection, the SRL direction of operation can be switched by another optical injection into the counterpropagating direction. The switching process manifests a typical bistable hysteresis loop, with its width and switching thresholds variable by the first injection power. Extremely sharp transition has been measured which confirms the potential of the SRL for all-optical regeneration applications.

All-Optical Response of Semiconductor Ring Laser to Dual-Optical Injections

Bistability in a semiconductor ring laser with two external optical injections is studied theoretically, numerically, and experimentally Two optical injections are added to the two counterpropagating modes in the laser respectively We first predicted theoretically that, with one of them acting as a static holding beam, the intensities of both modes will form a hysteresis loop as a function of the intensity of the second injection due to nonlinear mode competition The bistability and the hysteresis characteristics such as its width depend heavily on the intensity of the holding beam Average switching power will increase as the intensity of the holding beam is increased, accompanied by shrinking width of the hysteresis loop Numerical simulations and experiment are then carried out to verify the theoretical prediction, and the hysteresis loops at different holding beam strength are plotted The numerical results together with the qualitative experimental results demonstrate what has been predicted by the theoretical analysis, and a good agreement is obtained The interaction between the two injections demonstrates potentials for application in all-optical digital signal processing

Theoretical and Experimental Studies on Bistability in Semiconductor Ring Lasers With Two Optical Injections

This paper demonstrates all-optical digital logic gates using bistable monolithic semiconductor ring lasers (SRLs). With the flexible multi-functional experimental setup, we have experimentally demonstrated the application of SRLs to realize logic functions including: AND, OR, NOR, XOR and all-optical non-retum-to-zero (NRZ) to retum-to-zero (RZ) format conversion. Using bistable semiconductor ring lasers to fulfil all-optical logic functions have the advantages of high output extinction ratio, low switching energy, integration and the potential logic unit in the future.

All-optical Digital Logic Gates using Bistable Semiconductor Ring Lasers

Optical injection locking and cavity enhanced four-wave mixing in semiconductor ring lasers have been used to generate data modulated millimeter (mm)-wave optical signals. The scheme is shown to have multigigahertz (multi-GHz) modulation bandwidth. The 4-Gb/s data is transferred directly from an intensity modulated optical signal onto an mm-wave optical signal with the mm-wave frequency tunable in steps of 62.5 GHz and with flexible radio-frequency modulation formats over the optical carrier. Bit-error-rate and eye-diagram measurements confirm excellent signal quality.

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Generation and Modulation of Tunable mm-Wave Optical Signals Using Semiconductor Ring Laser

Novel all-optical implementations for logic AND and XOR gates are experimentally demonstrated at 2.5 Gbit/s based on cavity-enhanced four-wave-mixing (CE-FWM) combined with optical injection locking phenomena in monolithically integrated semiconductor ring lasers (SRLs). An all-optical AND gate with simultaneous wavelength conversion has been achieved using CE-FWM. An XOR function is demonstrated using two parallel SRLs, each performing one part of the XOR Boolean equation A ⊕ B=AB+AB. Error-free operation with extinction ratio higher than 10 dB confirms the suitability of SRLs for all-optical logic applications.

M.I. Memon

Papers

All-Optical Response of Semiconductor Ring Laser to Dual-Optical Injections

Theoretical and Experimental Studies on Bistability in Semiconductor Ring Lasers With Two Optical Injections

All-optical Digital Logic Gates using Bistable Semiconductor Ring Lasers

Generation and Modulation of Tunable mm-Wave Optical Signals Using Semiconductor Ring Laser

All-optical digital logic AND and XOR gates using four-wave-mixing in monolithically integrated semiconductor ring lasers