Method and system for grating couplers incorporating perturbed waveguides

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10168481-B2
Application number	US-201815950897-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 11, 2018
Priority date	Jul 9, 2012
Publication date	Jan 1, 2019
Grant date	Jan 1, 2019

Abstract

Methods and systems for grating couplers incorporating perturbed waveguides are disclosed and may include in a semiconductor photonics die, communicating optical signals into and/or out of the die utilizing a grating coupler on the die, where the grating coupler comprises perturbed waveguides. The perturbed waveguides may include rows of continuous waveguides with scatterers extending throughout a length of said perturbed waveguides a variable width along their length. The grating coupler may comprise a single polarization grating coupler comprising perturbed waveguides and a non-perturbed grating. The grating coupler may comprise a polarization splitting grating coupler (PSGC) that includes two sets of perturbed waveguides at a non-zero angle, or a plurality of non-linear rows of discrete shapes. The PSGC may comprise discrete scatterers at an intersection of the sets of perturbed waveguides. The grating coupler may comprise individual scatterers between the perturbed waveguides.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for communication, the method comprising:
in a semiconductor photonics die:
communicating optical signals into and/or out of said semiconductor photonics die utilizing a grating coupler on said semiconductor photonics die, wherein said grating coupler comprises perturbed waveguides as scattering elements, wherein the perturbed waveguides comprise rows of repeating spatially overlapping scatterers along each waveguide.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said perturbed waveguides comprise a variable width along a length of the perturbed waveguides.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said grating coupler comprises a single polarization grating coupler comprising perturbed waveguides and a non-perturbed grating.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said grating coupler comprises a polarization splitting grating coupler.

5. The method according to claim 4 , wherein said polarization splitting grating coupler comprises two sets of rows of perturbed waveguides that are at a non-zero angle from each other.

6. The method according to claim 5 , wherein said polarization splitting grating coupler comprises scatterers at intersections of said two sets of rows of perturbed waveguides.

7. The method according to claim 5 , wherein said polarization splitting grating coupler comprises a plurality of non-linear rows of discrete shapes at intersections of said two sets of rows of perturbed waveguides.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said grating coupler is etched in a silicon layer on said semiconductor photonics die.

9. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said grating coupler is deposited on said semiconductor photonics die.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said grating coupler comprises individual scatterers between said perturbed waveguides.

11. A system for communication, the system comprising:
a semiconductor photonics die comprising:
a grating coupler on said semiconductor photonics die, said grating coupler comprising perturbed waveguides as scattering elements and being operable to communicate optical signals into and/or out of said semiconductor die, wherein the perturbed waveguides comprise rows of repeating spatially overlapping scatterers along each waveguide.

12. The system according to claim 11 , wherein said perturbed waveguides comprise a variable width along a length of the perturbed waveguides.

13. The system according to claim 11 , wherein said grating coupler comprises a single polarization grating coupler comprising perturbed waveguides and a non-perturbed grating.

14. The system according to claim 11 , wherein said grating coupler comprises a polarization splitting grating coupler.

15. The system according to claim 14 , wherein said polarization splitting grating coupler comprises two sets of rows of perturbed waveguides that are at a non-zero angle from each other.

16. The system according to claim 15 , wherein said polarization splitting grating coupler comprises scatterers at intersections of said two sets of rows of perturbed waveguides.

17. The system according to claim 15 , wherein said polarization splitting grating coupler comprises a plurality of non-linear rows of shapes at intersections of said two sets of rows of perturbed waveguides.

18. The system according to claim 11 , wherein said grating coupler is etched in a silicon layer on said semiconductor photonics die.

19. The system according to claim 11 , wherein said grating coupler comprises individual scatterers between said perturbed waveguides.

20. A system for communication, the system comprising:
a semiconductor photonics die comprising:
a polarization splitting grating coupler on said semiconductor photonics die, said grating coupler comprising perturbed waveguides and discrete scatterers as scattering elements and being operable to communicate optical signals into and/or out of said semiconductor die, wherein the perturbed waveguides comprise rows of repeating spatially overlapping scatterers along each waveguide.

Assignees

• Luxtera Inc

Inventors

• Verslegers Lieven
• Mekis Attila

Classifications

• G02B2006/12107

  Grating · CPC title

• G02B6/26 Primary

  Optical coupling means (G02B6/36, G02B6/42 take precedence) · CPC title

• G02B6/124

  Geodesic lenses or integrated gratings · CPC title

• G02B6/34 Primary

  utilising prism or grating {(G02B6/293 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• G02B5/1861

  Reflection gratings characterised by their structure, e.g. step profile, contours of substrate or grooves, pitch variations, materials (G02B5/1809, G02B5/1828, G02B5/1833, G02B5/1838 and G02B5/1847 take precedence) · CPC title