Optical waveguide and optical device based on the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9400402-B2
Application number	US-201514590296-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 6, 2015
Priority date	Jan 7, 2014
Publication date	Jul 26, 2016
Grant date	Jul 26, 2016

Abstract

Disclosed is a technology related to an optical waveguide which is insensitive to an ambient temperature and is capable of adjusting a wavelength error due to a manufacturing processing deviation. The optical waveguide includes: a clad layer positioned on a substrate; a core layer positioned between the substrate and the clad layer, and including patterns positioned in a first region and a second region; and a wavelength adjusting unit positioned in the first region between the substrate and the clad layer, and configured to adjust a wavelength of an optical signal propagated through patterns passing through the first region based on received electric energy, in which the clad layer includes a material having a Thermo-Optic Coefficient (TOC) with an opposite sign to that of a material included in the core layer.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An optical waveguide, comprising:
a core layer positioned on a substrate, and including patterns positioned in a first region and a second region, the core layer having a lower side which faces the substrate and an upper side opposite to the lower side;
a clad layer positioned on the upper side of the core layer; and
a wavelength adjusting unit positioned in the first region between the substrate and the clad layer, and configured to adjust a wavelength of an optical signal propagated through patterns passing through the first region based on received electric energy,
wherein the clad layer includes a material having a Thermo-Optic Coefficient (TOC) with an opposite sign to that of a material included in the core layer,
wherein the core layer includes a silicon material having a positive TOC, and
wherein the clad layer includes:
a first clad layer positioned on the upper side of the core layer in the first region, and including a material having a smaller TOC than that of the silicon material included in the core layer; and
a second clad layer positioned on the upper side of the core layer in the second region and including a material having a negative TOC.

2. The optical waveguide of claim 1 , wherein the first region is smaller than the second region.

3. The optical waveguide of claim 1 , wherein the wavelength adjusting unit generates heat based on the received electric energy, and provides the generated heat to the patterns passing through the first region to adjust a wavelength of an optical signal propagated through the patterns passing through the first region.

4. The optical waveguide of claim 1 , further comprising:
a slap waveguide positioned between the substrate and the core layer.

5. The optical wavelength of claim 4 , wherein the wavelength adjusting unit includes a first wavelength adjusting unit on one side of the patterns in the first region and a second wavelength adjusting unit on the other side of the patterns in the first region, and the first and second wavelength adjusting units have a height greater than a thickness of the slap waveguide.

6. The optical waveguide of claim 1 , wherein the optical waveguide is used in an optical device based on the optical waveguide.

7. The optical waveguide of claim 1 , wherein the wavelength adjusting unit includes a first wavelength adjusting unit on one side of the patterns in the first region and a second wavelength adjusting unit on the other side of the patterns in the first region, and the first and second wavelength adjusting units are formed of a same material.

8. An optical device based on an optical waveguide, comprising:
a substrate; and
a ring resonator positioned on the substrate,
wherein the ring resonator includes:
a core layer positioned on the substrate, and including at least one ring waveguide positioned in a first region and a second region, the core layer having a lower side which faces the substrate and an upper side opposite to the lower side;
a clad layer positioned on the upper side of the core layer; and
a wavelength adjusting unit positioned in the first region between the substrate and the clad layer, and configured to adjust a wavelength of an optical signal propagated through a ring waveguide passing through the first region based on received electric energy,
wherein the clad layer includes a material having a Thermo-Optic Coefficient (TOC) with an opposite sign to that of a material included in the core layer,
wherein the core layer includes a silicon material having a positive TOC, and
wherein the clad layer includes:
a first clad layer positioned on the upper side of the core layer in the first region, and including a material having a smaller TOC than that of the silicon material included in the core layer; and
a second clad layer positioned on the upper side of the core layer in the second region and including a material having a negative TOC.

9. The optical device of claim 8 , wherein the first region is smaller than the second region.

10. The optical device of claim 8 , wherein the wavelength adjusting unit generates heat based on the received electric energy, and provides the generated heat to the ring waveguide passing through the first region to adjust a wavelength of an optical signal propagated through the ring waveguide passing through the first region.

11. The optical device of claim 8 , further comprising:
a slap waveguide positioned between the substrate and the core layer.

12. The optical device of claim 11 , wherein the wavelength adjusting unit includes a first wavelength adjusting unit on one side of the patterns in the first region and a second wavelength adjusting unit on the other side of the patterns in the first region, and the first and second wavelength adjusting units have a height greater than a thickness of the slap waveguide.

13. The optical device of claim 8 , wherein the wavelength adjusting unit includes a first wavelength adjusting unit on one side of the patterns in the first region and a second wavelength adjusting unit on the other side of the patterns in the first region, and the first and second wavelength adjusting units are formed of a same material.

14. The optical device of claim 8 , when taken from a plan view, the first region is a region corresponding to a range of a predetermined acute center angle relative to a center of a circle formed by the at least one ring waveguide.

15. The optical device of claim 14 , when taken from a plan view, the wavelength adjusting unit extends in the first region along the at least one ring waveguide and forms a center angle relative to the center of the circle not greater than the predetermined acute center angle of the first region.

Assignees

• Electronics & Telecommunications Res Inst

Inventors

• Lee Jong Moo
• Kim Min Su

Classifications

• G02F2203/60

  Temperature independent · CPC title

• G02F1/025

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

• G02F1/011

  in optical waveguides, not otherwise provided for in this subclass · CPC title

• G02F2203/04

  wavelength independent · CPC title

• G02F1/0147 Primary

  based on thermo-optic effects (G02F1/132 takes precedence) · CPC title