Design for broadband on-chip isolator using Stimulated Brillouin Scattering in dispersion-engineered chalcogenide waveguides

Opt Express. 2012 Sep 10;20(19):21235-46. doi: 10.1364/OE.20.021235.

Abstract

We propose a scheme for on-chip isolation in chalcogenide (As₂S₃) rib waveguides, in which Stimulated Brillouin Scattering is used to induce non-reciprocal mode conversion within a multi-moded waveguide. The design exploits the idea that a chalcogenide rib buried in a silica matrix acts as waveguide for both light and sound, and can also be designed to be multi-moded for both optical and acoustic waves. The enhanced opto-acoustic coupling allows significant isolation (> 20 dB) within a chip-scale (cm-long) device (< 10 cm). We also show that the bandwidth of this device can be dramatically increased by tuning the dispersion of the waveguide to match the group velocity between optical modes: we find that 20 dB isolation can be extended over a bandwidth of 25 nm.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.