Method and system for a vertical junction high-speed phase modulator

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10444593-B2
Application number	US-201715694236-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 1, 2017
Priority date	Sep 1, 2016
Publication date	Oct 15, 2019
Grant date	Oct 15, 2019

Abstract

Methods and systems for a vertical junction high-speed phase modulator are disclosed and may include a semiconductor device having a semiconductor waveguide including a slab section, a rib section extending above the slab section, and raised ridges extending above the slab section on both sides of the rib section. The semiconductor device has a vertical pn junction with p-doped material and n-doped material arranged vertically with respect to each other in the rib and slab sections. The rib section may be either fully n-doped or p-doped in each cross-section along the semiconductor waveguide. Electrical connection to the p-doped and n-doped material may be enabled by forming contacts on the raised ridges, and electrical connection may be provided to the rib section from one of the contacts via periodically arranged sections of the semiconductor waveguide, where a cross-section of both the rib section and the slab section in the periodically arranged sections may be fully n-doped or fully p-doped.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A semiconductor device, the device comprising:
a semiconductor waveguide comprising a slab section, a rib section extending above the slab section, and raised ridges extending above the slab section on both sides of the rib section;
a vertical pn junction with p-doped material and n-doped material arranged vertically with respect to each other in the rib and slab sections, wherein the rib section is either fully n-doped or fully p-doped in each cross-section along the semiconductor waveguide;
contacts on the raised ridges that enable electrical connection to the p-doped material and n-doped material; and
wherein one of the contacts enables electrical connection to the rib section via periodically arranged sections of the semiconductor waveguide where a cross-section of both the rib section and the slab section in the periodically arranged sections is fully n-doped or fully p-doped.

2. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the rib section is fully n-doped or fully p-doped along a full length of the semiconductor waveguide.

3. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the rib section alternates between fully p-doped or fully n-doped in sections along a full length of the semiconductor waveguide.

4. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the slab section alternates between fully p-doped or fully n-doped in sections along a full length of the semiconductor waveguide.

5. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the slab section is fully n-doped or fully p-doped along a full length of the semiconductor waveguide except for in the periodically arranged sections.

6. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the raised ridges are separated from the rib by trenches.

7. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the semiconductor waveguide comprises a first phase modulation section of an optical modulator.

8. A method for communication, the method comprising:
in a semiconductor waveguide comprising:
a slab section, a rib section extending above the slab section, and raised ridges extending above the slab section on both sides of the rib section;
a vertical pn junction with p-doped material and n-doped material arranged vertically with respect to each other in the rib and slab sections, wherein the rib section is either fully n-doped or fully p-doped in each cross-section along the semiconductor waveguide;
contacts on the raised ridges to enable an electrical connection to the p-doped material and n-doped material; and
wherein one of the contacts enable an electrical connection to the rib section from via periodically arranged sections of the semiconductor waveguide where a cross-section of both the rib section and the slab section in the periodically arranged sections is fully n-doped or fully p-doped:

receiving a continuous-wave optical signal in the semiconductor waveguide; and
generating a modulated optical signal by applying a modulating voltage to the contacts.

9. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the rib section is fully n-doped or fully p-doped along a full length of the semiconductor waveguide.

10. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the rib section alternates between fully p-doped or fully n-doped in sections along a full length of the semiconductor waveguide.

11. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the slab section alternates between fully p-doped or fully n-doped in sections along a full length of the semiconductor waveguide.

12. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the slab section is fully n-doped or fully p-doped along a full length of the semiconductor waveguide except for in the periodically arranged sections.

13. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the raised ridges are separated from the rib by trenches.

14. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the semiconductor waveguide comprises a first phase modulation section of an optical modulator.

Assignees

• Luxtera Inc

Inventors

• Mekis Attila
• Sahni Subal
• De Koninck Yannick
• Masini Gianlorenzo
• Gholami Faezeh

Classifications

• G02F1/025

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

• G02F2201/12

  electrode · CPC title

• G02F2201/063

  ridge; rib; strip loaded · CPC title

• G02F1/2257 Primary

  the optical waveguides being made of semiconducting material · CPC title

• G02F2001/212

  Physics · mapped topic