Pillar photonic crystal

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11067500-B2
Application number	US-202016817874-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 13, 2020
Priority date	Apr 3, 2019
Publication date	Jul 20, 2021
Grant date	Jul 20, 2021

Abstract

Techniques (e.g., implemented in devices, methods and/or in non-transitory storage units) are used for confining wavelengths, e.g., using a pillar photonic crystal. A semiconductor device includes a pillar photonic crystal including a structure and a plurality of pillars extending from the structure in a height direction, wherein the plurality of pillars form at least one waveguide for electromagnetic radiation at a specific wavelength, the at least one waveguide extending in at least one planar direction, wherein the structure includes a confining layer in doped semiconductor material to support propagation of surface plasmon polaritons.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A semiconductor device, comprising:
a pillar photonic crystal including a structure and a plurality of pillars extending from the structure in a height direction,
wherein the plurality of pillars form at least one waveguide for electromagnetic radiation at a specific wavelength, the at least one waveguide extending in at least one planar direction,
wherein the structure includes a confining layer in doped semiconductor material to support propagation of surface plasmon polaritons, and
wherein the semiconductor material of the confinement layer has a concentration of charges between 10 19 cm −3 and 10 21 cm −3 .

2. The semiconductor device of claim 1 ,
wherein the height of the pillars in the height direction is associated to a length of a vertical mode distribution of electromagnetic radiation at the specific wavelength.

3. The semiconductor device of claim 1 ,
wherein the confining layer has a thickness of between 50 nm and 150 in the height direction.

4. The semiconductor device of claim 1 ,
wherein a relative permittivity of the doped semiconductor of the confinement layer is negative.

5. The semiconductor device of claim 1 ,
wherein an imaginary part of a relative permittivity of the doped semiconductor is between −1 and 0.

6. The semiconductor device of claim 1 ,
wherein the specific wavelength is 4.26 μm.

7. The semiconductor device of claim 1 ,
wherein the specific wavelength is in a mid-infrared, IR, region.

8. An optical gas sensor for measuring the amount of a specific gas, comprising:
the semiconductor device configured according to claim 1 ; and
an optical detector to detect electromagnetic radiation at the specific wavelength, wherein the specific wavelength is a wavelength of maximum absorption of the specific gas; and
the optical detector is configured to measure an intensity of electromagnetic radiation at the specific wavelength,
so that the optical gas sensor determines the amount of the specific gas on the basis of an intensity of the electromagnetic radiation.

9. A method for spatially confining electromagnetic radiation at a specific wavelength, the method comprising:
confining electromagnetic radiation in a lateral direction through a pillar array extending in a height direction and forming a photonic crystal; and
confining the electromagnetic radiation in a height direction by plasmonic effect, through a confinement layer extending in a planar direction perpendicular to the height direction, the confinement layer comprising a doped semiconductor material having a concentration of charges between 10 19 cm −3 and 10 21 cm −3 .

10. A method for measuring a quantity of specific gas, the specific gas being associated to a specific wavelength of maximum absorption, the method comprising:
confining electromagnetic radiation at the specific wavelength of maximum absorption according to claim 9 in an environment including the specific gas; and
measuring an intensity of the electromagnetic radiation at the specific wavelength of maximum absorption to estimate the amount of the specific gas.

11. A non-transitory storage unit containing instructions which, when executed by a processor in combination with the photonic crystal, cause the processor to control the method of claim 9 .

12. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, comprising:
doping a layer of a semiconductor;
depositing a non-doped layer of semiconductor over the doped layer of semiconductor; and
selectively removing material from the non-doped layer of semiconductor so as to obtain an array of pillars forming a photonic crystal for a specific wavelength,
wherein depositing the non-doped layer of semiconductor includes depositing the non-doped layer to have a thickness which is a length or a multiple of the length of a vertical mode distribution of electromagnetic radiation at the specific wavelength.

13. A method for manufacturing an optical gas sensor for measuring the amount of a specific gas, the method comprising:
performing the method of claim 12 ; and
applying an optical detector configured to detect the specific wavelength.

Assignees

• Infineon Technologies Ag

Inventors

• Abasahl Banafsheh
• Boni Anisuzzaman
• Grille Thomas
• Jakoby Bernhard
• Jannesari Reyhaneh

Classifications

• G01N21/7746

  the waveguide coupled to a cavity resonator · CPC title

• G01N33/004

  CO or CO2 · CPC title

• G02B2006/1213

  comprising photonic band-gap structures or photonic lattices · CPC title

• G02B6/1225 Primary

  comprising photonic band-gap structures or photonic lattices · CPC title

• G01N21/3504 Primary

  for analysing gases, e.g. multi-gas analysis · CPC title