Nanotube electro-optical component, optronic or optical link-based hybrid integrated circuit integrating this component, and method of fabrication

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9568671-B2
Application number	US-201113704452-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 15, 2011
Priority date	Jun 15, 2010
Publication date	Feb 14, 2017
Grant date	Feb 14, 2017

Abstract

A photonic component is provided including at least one linear optical waveguide, of which an active portion is surrounded over all or part of its periphery by a grouping of one or more essentially semiconducting nanotubes. These nanotubes interact with their exterior environment in an active zone extending on either side of the optical waveguide, to thus induce an optical coupling between an electrical or optical signal applied to the nanotubes and on the other hand an optical signal in the active portion of the waveguide. Such a component can carry out bipolar electro-optical functions as light source, or modulator or detector, inside the optical guide, for example with an electro-optical coupling between on the one hand an electrical signal applied between the electrodes, and on the other hand an optical signal emitted or modified in the active portion of the optical waveguide towards the remainder of the optical guide.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A photonic component comprising: at least one linear optical waveguide made of silicon or silicon nitride an integrated portion of which, called an active portion, is surrounded over all or part of its periphery by a group of one or more essentially semiconducting deposited nanotubes which interact electrically, in so-called active zone extending on either side of said active portion of the optical waveguide, with at least two electrodes arranged on either side of said active portion, thus inducing an electro-optical coupling
from an electrical signal applied between said electrodes, and
toward producing an optical signal emitted or modified in said active portion of the optical waveguide towards the remainder of said optical waveguide.

2. The component according to claim 1 , characterized in that the optical waveguide comprises, in its active portion, an optical light signal amplification structure.

3. The component according to claim 1 , characterized in that the electrical signal is applied by at least two electrodes situated around the active portion and on either side of the optical waveguide, so as to generate between them an electric field or current substantially transversal to the longitudinal axis of the optical guide.

4. The component according to claim 1 , characterized in that the electrodes interact with the nanotubes of the group without electrical connection, by creating an electric field which causes within said nanotubes a Kerr effect and/or a Stark effect and/or an electro-absorption carrying out a modulation of a light flux circulating in the active portion of the optical waveguide, as a function of a voltage or of an electrical signal applied to the electrodes.

5. The component according to claim 1 , characterized in that, in a so-called alignment zone including the active portion of the optical guide and all or part of the active zone, the nanotubes of the group of nanotubes are mostly aligned in a same direction.

6. The component according to claim 5 , characterized in that most of the nanotubes in the alignment zone are each connected to the two electrodes, the application to said electrodes of a voltage or of an electrical signal thus creating in said connected nanotubes an injection of charge carriers causing, by the phenomenon of electroluminescence, emission of a light flux within an optical mode which includes all or part of the active portion of the optical waveguide, creating from the signal or voltage applied to the electrodes a light flux in the optical waveguide and thus producing a light source for said optical guide.

7. The component according to claim 1 , characterized in that the electrical signal applied or detected within the group of nanotubes is a bipolar signal.

8. The component according to claim 1 , wherein the group of nanotubes comprises a plurality of nanotubes.

9. The component according to claim 1 , characterized in that it comprises a plurality of optical waveguides, completely or partly coated with nanotubes within the same group of nanotubes;
said optical waveguides interacting independently of each other, each with at least two electrodes, said electrodes determining a plurality of independent active zones;
thus producing a plurality of components, said components being functionally independent of each other while using the same group of nanotubes.

10. The component according to claim 1 , characterized in that it is integrated in both an electronic circuit and in an integrated optical circuit, said integrated electronic and optical circuits interacting with each other through said electro-optical component.

11. An integrated electronic and optical circuit comprising: at least one optical circuit and at least one electronic circuit, interacting with each other through at least one electro-optical component according to claim 1 , said electro-optical component being integrated in both said optical circuit and in said electronic circuit.

12. The circuit according to claim 11 , characterized in that it comprises a plurality of electronic assemblies each comprising and using at least one optical-optical or electro-optical component in order to communicate with each other by optical signals.

13. A method for producing an electro-optical component or circuit according to claim 1 , comprising, for producing a coupling between at least one optical waveguide and one or more nanotubes, at least:
depositing a group of one or more nanotubes onto or around, at least one optical waveguide portion and interacting electrically with at least two electrodes situated on either side of said optical waveguide portion; or
creating at least one optical waveguide portion completely or partly surrounded by at least one region forming a group of one or more deposited nanotubes that interact electrically with at least two electrodes situated on either side of said optical waveguide portion; or
a combination of these two operations.

14. The method according to claim 13 , characterized in that the creation operation comprises the following steps:
etching or deposition forming at least one optical guide made of silicon or silicon nitride;
deposition of a region forming a group of one or more semiconductor-type nanotubes surrounding all or part of the periphery of at least one so-called active portion of said optical waveguide;
etching or deposition of electrodes surrounding on either side said active portion of the optical waveguide and arranged to interact electrically with the nanotubes surrounding said active portion.

15. The method according to claim 13 , characterized in that it also comprises, between a step of deposition of nanotubes and a step of creation of the electrodes:
a step of etching or cutting of said group of nanotubes in two cutting regions distributed on either side of the active portion of the optical waveguide, said cutting regions being arranged to cut a same plurality of nanotubes within said group;
the step of creation of the electrodes comprising a deposition or a growth of said electrodes within said cutting regions, so as to electrically connect said electrodes to both ends of a same plurality of nanotubes in the group of nanotubes.

16. The method for producing an electro-optical component according to claim 13 , characterized in that the creation operation comprises the following steps:
etching or deposition, on the one hand, of material forming at least one optical guide made of silicon or silicon nitride, and on the other hand of electrodes surrounding on either side a so-called active portion of the optical waveguide;
deposition of a group of semiconductor-type nanotubes coating all or part of the periphery of at least said active portion of said optical waveguide and arranged to interact electrically with said electrodes.

17. The method according to claim 13 , characterized in that it also comprises a step of underetching of the substrate or of the layer situated under the optical waveguide, carried out at the level of the active portion so as to allow the group of nanotubes to coat the lower part of said optical waveguide.

18. The method according to claim 16 , characterized in that it comprises a step of producing at least one monobloc region forming a group of nanotubes, followed by one or more operations of producing a plurality of components, functionally independent and produced within the same group of nanotubes.

19. The method according to claim 13 , characterized in that it comprises a control of the optical wavelength of the optical or e

Assignees

• Vivien Laurent
• Gaufres Etienne
• Izard Nicolas
• Univ Paris Sud 11
• Centre Nat Rech Scient

Inventors

• Vivien Laurent
• Gaufres Etienne
• Izard Nicolas

Classifications

• H10P50/00

  Etching of wafers, substrates or parts of devices · CPC title

• Y02E10/549

  Organic PV cells · CPC title

• B82Y30/00

  Nanotechnology for materials or surface science, e.g. nanocomposites · CPC title

• G02B6/12 Primary

  of the integrated circuit kind (electric integrated circuits H10B, H10D84/00 - H10D89/00, H10F19/00, H10F39/00, H10H29/00, H10K19/00, H10K39/00, H10K59/00, H10N19/00, H10N39/00, H10N59/00, H10N69/00, H10N79/00, H10N89/00) · CPC title

• H01L51/0048

  Electricity · mapped topic