Recent years have witnessed many breakthroughs in research on graphene (the first two-dimensional atomic crystal) as well as a significant advance in the mass production of this material. This one-atom-thick fabric of carbon uniquely combines extreme mechanical strength, exceptionally high electronic and thermal conductivities, impermeability to gases, as well as many other supreme properties, all of which make it highly attractive for numerous applications. Here we review recent progress in graphene research and in the development of production methods, and critically analyse the feasibility of various graphene applications.

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A roadmap for graphene

The richness of optical and electronic properties of graphene attracts enormous interest. Graphene has high mobility and optical transparency, in addition to flexibility, robustness and environmental stability. So far, the main focus has been on fundamental physics and electronic devices. However, we believe its true potential lies in photonics and optoelectronics, where the combination of its unique optical and electronic properties can be fully exploited, even in the absence of a bandgap, and the linear dispersion of the Dirac electrons enables ultrawideband tunability. The rise of graphene in photonics and optoelectronics is shown by several recent results, ranging from solar cells and light-emitting devices to touch screens, photodetectors and ultrafast lasers. Here we review the state-of-the-art in this emerging field.

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Graphene photonics and optoelectronics

Graphene, the single-atom-thick form of carbon, holds promise for many applications, notably in electronics where it can complement or be integrated with silicon-based devices. Intense efforts have been devoted to develop a key enabling device, a broadband, fast optical modulator with a small device footprint. Now Liu et al. demonstrate an exciting new possibility for graphene in the area of on-chip optical communication: a graphene-based optical modulator integrated with a silicon chip. This new device relies on the electrical tuning of the Fermi level of the graphene sheet, and achieves modulation of guided light at frequencies over 1 gigahertz, together with a broad operating spectrum. At just 25 square micrometres in area, it is one of the smallest of its type. Integrated optical modulators with high modulation speed, small footprint and large optical bandwidth are poised to be the enabling devices for on-chip optical interconnects1,2. Semiconductor modulators have therefore been heavily researched over the past few years. However, the device footprint of silicon-based modulators is of the order of millimetres, owing to its weak electro-optical properties3. Germanium and compound semiconductors, on the other hand, face the major challenge of integration with existing silicon electronics and photonics platforms4,5,6. Integrating silicon modulators with high-quality-factor optical resonators increases the modulation strength, but these devices suffer from intrinsic narrow bandwidth and require sophisticated optical design; they also have stringent fabrication requirements and limited temperature tolerances7. Finding a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS)-compatible material with adequate modulation speed and strength has therefore become a task of not only scientific interest, but also industrial importance. Here we experimentally demonstrate a broadband, high-speed, waveguide-integrated electroabsorption modulator based on monolayer graphene. By electrically tuning the Fermi level of the graphene sheet, we demonstrate modulation of the guided light at frequencies over 1 GHz, together with a broad operation spectrum that ranges from 1.35 to 1.6 µm under ambient conditions. The high modulation efficiency of graphene results in an active device area of merely 25 µm2, which is among the smallest to date. This graphene-based optical modulation mechanism, with combined advantages of compact footprint, low operation voltage and ultrafast modulation speed across a broad range of wavelengths, can enable novel architectures for on-chip optical communications.

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A graphene-based broadband optical modulator

We present the science and technology roadmap for graphene, related two-dimensional crystals, and hybrid systems, targeting an evolution in technology, that might lead to impacts and benefits reaching into most areas of society. This roadmap was developed within the framework of the European Graphene Flagship and outlines the main targets and research areas as best understood at the start of this ambitious project. We provide an overview of the key aspects of graphene and related materials (GRMs), ranging from fundamental research challenges to a variety of applications in a large number of sectors, highlighting the steps necessary to take GRMs from a state of raw potential to a point where they might revolutionize multiple industries. We also define an extensive list of acronyms in an effort to standardize the nomenclature in this emerging field.

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Science and technology roadmap for graphene, related two-dimensional crystals, and hybrid systems

Metal interconnections are expected to become the limiting factor for the performance of electronic systems as transistors continue to shrink in size. Replacing them by optical interconnections, at different levels ranging from rack-to-rack down to chip-to-chip and intra-chip interconnections, could provide the low power dissipation, low latencies and high bandwidths that are needed. The implementation of optical interconnections relies on the development of micro-optical devices that are integrated with the microelectronics on chips. Recent demonstrations of silicon low-loss waveguides, light emitters, amplifiers and lasers approach this goal, but a small silicon electro-optic modulator with a size small enough for chip-scale integration has not yet been demonstrated. Here we experimentally demonstrate a high-speed electro-optical modulator in compact silicon structures. The modulator is based on a resonant light-confining structure that enhances the sensitivity of light to small changes in refractive index of the silicon and also enables high-speed operation. The modulator is 12 micrometres in diameter, three orders of magnitude smaller than previously demonstrated. Electro-optic modulators are one of the most critical components in optoelectronic integration, and decreasing their size may enable novel chip architectures.

Micrometre-scale silicon electro-optic modulator

A fast optical modulator or switch with reduced optical loss is disclosed An apparatus according to aspects of the present invention includes an optical splitter disposed in a semiconductor material An optical beam having a first wavelength is split by the optical splitter into first and second portions First and second optical waveguides disposed in the semiconductor material are optically coupled to the optical splitter The first and second portions of the optical beam are to be directed through the first and second optical waveguides, respectively The first optical waveguide is also optically coupled to receive a pump optical beam The pump optical beam has a pump wavelength and a pump power level to amplify and phase shift the first portion of the optical beam of the first wavelength in the first optical waveguide A diode structure is disposed in the first optical waveguide and is selectively biased to sweep out free carriers from the first optical waveguide generated in response to two photon absorption in the optical waveguide An optical coupler is disposed in the semiconductor material and is optically coupled to the first and second optical waveguides to combine the first and second portions of the optical beam

Reduced loss ultra-fast semiconductor modulator and switch

A separate-absorption-charge-multiplication Ge/Si avalanche photodiode with very high gain-bandwidth-product over 800GHz is reported. The origin of this dramatically high value is explained using well consentient measurement and simulation results.

Origin of the gain-bandwidth-product enhancement in separate-absorption-charge-multiplication Ge/Si avalanche photodiodes

We report a novel laser architecture, the silicon evanescent laser (SEL), that utilizes a silicon waveguide and offset AlGaInAs quantum wells. The silicon waveguide is fabricated on a Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI) wafer using a CMOScompatible process, and is bonded with the AlGaInAs quantum well structure using low temperature O2 plasma-assisted wafer bonding. The optical mode in the SEL is predominantly confined in the passive silicon waveguide and evanescently couples into the III-V active region providing optical gain. This approach combines the advantages of high gain III-V materials and the integration capability of silicon technology. Moreover, the difficulty of coupling an external laser source is overcome as the hybrid waveguide can be self-aligned to silicon-based passive optical devices. The SEL lases continuous wave (CW) at 1568 nm with a threshold of 23 mW. The maximum single-sided fiber-coupled CW output power is 4.5 mW. The SEL characteristics are dependent on the silicon waveguide dimensions resulting in different confinement factors in the III-V gain region.

Heterogeneous Integration of Silicon and AlGaInAs for a Silicon Evanescent Laser

We present a thermally tunable Bragg grating filter based on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology. The grating’s periodic refractive index modulation is achieved with alternating regions of single-crystalline silicon and polycrystalline silicon (polySi).

Tunable Bragg grating filters in SOI waveguides

Recently, we have realised a polarisation independent optical racetrack resonator whose resonant dips for TE and TM align to better than 1pm. The devices had a Free Spectral Range (FSR) of only several hundred picometres. This in large part was to the relatively large bend radius (~ 400μm) designed and fabricated with initial focus on producing low bend loss devices. Modelling of the bend loss of the same dimension devices shows that the bend radius can be reduced significantly (down to ~25μm) to produce race track ring resonator with an FSR that is approximately 400% larger than that of those previously fabricated, whilst retaining polarisation independence. This paper will focus on the proposed enhancement of these devices as well as the impetus for their investigation.

Mario J. Paniccia

Papers

Reduced loss ultra-fast semiconductor modulator and switch

Origin of the gain-bandwidth-product enhancement in separate-absorption-charge-multiplication Ge/Si avalanche photodiodes

Heterogeneous Integration of Silicon and AlGaInAs for a Silicon Evanescent Laser

Tunable Bragg grating filters in SOI waveguides

Enhanced polarization-independent optical ring resonators on silicon-on-insulator