Linear optical phase modulators

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10216016-B2
Application number	US-201514810444-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 27, 2015
Priority date	Jul 25, 2014
Publication date	Feb 26, 2019
Grant date	Feb 26, 2019

Abstract

Methods, systems, and devices are disclosed for linear optical phase modulators. In some aspects, a linear optical phase modulator device is provided to include a substrate; a PN junction formed on the substrate to include a P region, a N region and a depletion region formed by the P and N regions; and an optical waveguide formed on the substrate and structured to guide light in one or more optical modes to have a spatial optical intensity distribution based on a free carrier density spatial distribution in the PN junction in such that the depletion region exhibits a substantially linear response with regard to a voltage applied to the PN junction to modulate a phase of the light guided by the optical waveguide.

First claim

What is claimed are techniques and structures as described and shown, including:

1. A linear optical phase modulator device, comprising:
a substrate;
a PN junction formed on the substrate to include a P region, a N region and a depletion region formed by the P and N regions; and
an optical waveguide formed on the substrate and structured to guide light in one or more optical modes to have a spatial optical intensity distribution based on a free carrier density spatial distribution in the PN junction, the optical waveguide structured to allow a second order optical mode to have a first optical peak inside the P region and a second optical peak inside the N region such that a voltage applied to the PN junction to modulate a phase of the light guided by the optical waveguide has a linear relationship with the phase of the light.

2. The device of claim 1 , wherein the optical waveguide has an optical field intensity which increases as distance from the junction increases.

3. The device of claim 1 , wherein the PN junction is located between peaks of an optical field.

4. The device of claim 1 , wherein the optical waveguide has a width of 800 nm to 1500 nm.

5. The device of claim 1 , wherein the optical waveguide has a height of 200 nm to 500 nm.

6. The device of claim 1 , wherein the linearity of the device depends on a waveguide width and doping concentrations of the P region and the N region.

7. The device of claim 1 , wherein the P region and N region include boron and phosphorous.

Assignees

• Univ Cornell

Inventors

• Lee Yoon Ho
• Cardenas Jaime
• Lipson Michal

Classifications

• G02F1/025 Primary

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