Method and system for a low parasitic silicon high-speed phase modulator having raised fingers perpendicular to the PN junction

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10025120-B2
Application number	US-201314105527-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 13, 2013
Priority date	Dec 13, 2012
Publication date	Jul 17, 2018
Grant date	Jul 17, 2018

Abstract

Methods and systems for a low-parasitic silicon high-speed phase modulator are disclosed and may include fabricating an optical phase modulator that comprises a PN junction waveguide formed in a silicon layer, wherein the silicon layer may be on an oxide layer and the oxide layer may be on a silicon substrate. The PN junction waveguide may have p-doped and n-doped regions on opposite sides along a length of the PN junction waveguide, and portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions may be removed. Contacts may be formed on remaining portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions. Portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions may be removed symmetrically about the PN junction waveguide. Portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions may be removed in a staggered fashion along the length of the PN junction waveguide. Etch transition features may be removed along the p-doped and n-doped regions.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for a semiconductor device, the method comprising:
fabricating an optical phase modulator that comprises a PN junction waveguide formed in a silicon layer, wherein the silicon layer is on an oxide layer and the oxide layer is on a silicon substrate, said PN junction waveguide having p-doped and n-doped regions on opposite sides along a length of the PN junction waveguide with only p-doping on a first of said opposite sides and only n-doping on a second of said opposite sides;
removing first portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions thereby forming the PN junction waveguide;
removing second portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions intermittently along a length of the PN junction waveguide such that raised fingers of p-doped and n-doped regions are formed along said PN junction waveguide, wherein a major axis of said raised fingers is perpendicular to said PN junction waveguide and a minor axis of said raised fingers is parallel to said PN junction waveguide; and
forming contacts to said fingers of p-doped and n-doped regions.

2. The method according to claim 1 , comprising removing the second portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions symmetrically about the PN junction waveguide.

3. The method according to claim 1 , comprising removing the second portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions in a staggered fashion along the length of the PN junction waveguide.

4. The method according to claim 1 , comprising removing etch transition features along the p-doped and n-doped regions, wherein the etch transition features provide a transition between deep etched and shallow etched features in the optical phase modulator.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the silicon layer, oxide layer, and silicon substrate comprise a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) wafer.

6. The method according to claim 1 , comprising reducing a parasitic capacitance of the optical phase modulator by the removing of the second portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the optical phase modulator is integrated in an optical transceiver formed on the silicon substrate.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the remaining portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions comprise fingers for forming contacts that are staggered on opposite sides along the length of the PN junction waveguide.

9. The method according to claim 1 , comprising removing the second portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions down to the oxide layer on the silicon substrate.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the optical phase modulator is integrated in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer modulator.

11. A system for communication, the system comprising:
an optical phase modulator that comprises a PN junction waveguide formed in a silicon layer, wherein the silicon layer is on an oxide layer and the oxide layer is on a silicon substrate;
first p-doped and n-doped regions on opposite sides along a length forming the PN junction waveguide with only p-doping on a first of said opposite sides and only n-doping on a second of said opposite sides;
regions where the p-doped and n-doped regions have been intermittently removed along the length of the PN junction waveguide such that raised fingers of p-doped and n-doped regions are formed along said PN junction waveguide, wherein a major axis of said raised fingers is perpendicular to said PN junction waveguide and a minor axis of said raised fingers is parallel to said PN junction waveguide; and
contacts formed on said fingers of p-doped and n-doped regions.

12. The system according to claim 11 , wherein portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions are removed symmetrically about the PN junction waveguide.

13. The system according to claim 11 , wherein portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions are removed in a staggered fashion along the length of the PN junction waveguide.

14. The system according to claim 11 , wherein etch transition features are removed along the p-doped and n-doped regions, wherein the etch transition features provide a transition between deep etched and shallow etched features in the optical phase modulator.

15. The system according to claim 14 , wherein the remaining portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions comprise fingers where contacts are formed that are staggered on opposite sides along the length of the PN junction waveguide.

16. The system according to claim 11 , wherein the silicon layer, oxide layer, and silicon substrate comprise a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) wafer.

17. The system according to claim 11 , wherein the optical phase modulator is integrated in an optical transceiver formed on the silicon substrate.

18. The system according to claim 11 , wherein portions of the p-doped and n-doped regions are removed down to the oxide layer on the silicon substrate.

19. The system according to claim 11 , wherein the optical phase modulator is integrated in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer modulator.

20. A system for communication, the system comprising:
a Mach-Zehnder optical modulator that comprises a PN junction waveguide formed in a silicon layer on an oxide layer, wherein the silicon layer and the oxide layer are part of a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) substrate;
p-doped and n-doped regions on opposite sides along a length of the PN junction waveguide with only p-doping on a first of said opposite sides and only n-doping on a second of said opposite sides;
regions where the p-doped and n-doped regions have been removed in an alternating fashion along the length of the PN junction waveguide such that raised fingers of p-doped and n-doped regions are formed along said PN junction waveguide, wherein a major axis of said raised fingers is perpendicular to said PN junction waveguide and a minor axis of said raised fingers is parallel to said PN junction waveguide; and
contacts formed on said fingers of p-doped and n-doped regions.

Assignees

• Luxtera Inc
• Luxtera Inc

Inventors

• Ayazi Ali
• Masini Gianlorenzo
• Sahni Subal
• Mekis Attila
• Pinguet Thierry

Classifications

• G02F1/2257

  the optical waveguides being made of semiconducting material · CPC title

• G02F2202/105

  single crystal Si · CPC title

• G02F2201/06

  integrated waveguide · CPC title

• G02F1/025 Primary

  in an optical waveguide structure (G02F1/017, {G02F1/2257} take precedence) · CPC title

• G02F2001/212

  Physics · mapped topic