EurekAlert September 16, 2022
Superconducting microprocessors and quantum computers promise to revolutionize computation, but ultra-cold components must interface with ambient temperature systems. An international team of researchers (USA – UC Santa Barbara, industry, Italy, UK, Japan) has built a device that translates electrical input into pulses of light. An electric current creates a magnetic field that changes the refractive index of a synthetic garnet making it possible to tune the amplitude of the light that circulates in a micro-ring resonator. This creates bright and dark pulses that carry information through the fiberoptic cable. The modulator operates at wavelengths of 1,550 nanometers and has a bandwidth of about 2 gigabits per second. They believe the bandwidth can be improved by replacing garnet with europium-based materials which show a magneto-optic effect 300 times larger than the garnet…read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLEÂ
Integrated MO modulator. Credit: Nature Electronics, September 5, 2022(2022)