Tunable optical chip paves way for new quantum devices

Nanowerk  October 2, 2019
Building on previous development of a platform called crystalline SiC-on-insulator researchers at Georgia Institute of Technology fabricated microring resonators, using the crystalline SiC-on-insulator technology. In each resonator, light at resonance wavelengths, traveling around the ring will build up strength through constructive interference. The resonator can be used to control the amplitude and phase of the light in a waveguide coupled to it. To create a tunable resonator with a high degree of control, they fabricated electric heaters on top of the microrings. When an electric current is applied to the integrated microheater, it locally increases the temperature of the SiC microring and thus changes its resonant wavelengths. The test results showed that it is possible to achieve high-quality resonators with low-power thermal tunability. The device can be used to create a large range of reconfigurable devices such as phase-shifters and tunable optical couplers needed for networking applications and quantum information processing…read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE

The schematic image shows their concept for a quantum photonics integrated circuit chip that includes the circular microring resonators and microheaters. Credit: Ali Adibi, Georgia Institute of Technology.

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