Phys.org March 22, 2023
Silicon’s relatively weak electro-optic effects result in modulators with a significant footprint and thermo-optic tuning devices that require high power consumption, which are substantial impediments for very large-scale integration in silicon photonics. An international team of researchers (Switzerland, Sweden, Belgium, Ireland) has introduced a silicon photonic MEMS platform consisting of high-performance nano-opto-electromechanical devices fully integrated alongside standard silicon photonics foundry components, with wafer-level sealing for long-term reliability, flip-chip bonding to redistribution interposers, and fibre-array attachment for high port count optical and electrical interfacing. Their experimental demonstration of fundamental silicon photonic MEMS circuit elements, including power couplers, phase shifters and wavelength-division multiplexing devices using standardized technology has overcome previous impediments to enable scaling to very large photonic integrated circuits for applications in telecommunications, neuromorphic computing, sensing, programmable photonics, and quantum computing… read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Representative examples of recently demonstrated silicon photonic MEMS. Credit: Microsystems & Nanoengineering volume 9, Article number: 27 (2023)