Programmable Integrated Photonic Devices: Design, Fabrication and Applications

A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "A:Physics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2022) | Viewed by 8024

Special Issue Editors

Istituto di Fotonica e Nanotecnologie, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (IFN-CNR), Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32-20133 Milano, Italy
Interests: femtosecond laser micromachining; integrated photonics; single-photon detectors
Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32-20133 Milano, Italy
Interests: programmable optical circuits; integrated quantum photonics; femtosecond laser micromachining
Dipartimento di Elettronica, Informazione e Bioingegneria, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32-20133 Milano, Italy
Interests: programmable photonics; photonic integrated circuits; silicon photonics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the last few decades, photonic integrated circuits (PICs) have emerged as a powerful technology to route and manipulate light signals for several applications. Silicon-on-insulator (SOI), silicon nitride, lithium niobate on insulator (LNOI) and many other technological platforms have been developed, providing a large set of highly performing components, such as tunable directional couplers, filters, modulators, sources and detectors. In particular, the possibility to reconfigure the optical operation at run-time through an external control, either based on electronics or optics, has paved the way to so-called programmable PICs.

Programmable PICs promise to implement several functions on chips, making them an enabling and powerful tool for various applications. Indeed, complex reconfigurable interferometric systems not only add upgradability in standard photonic-based applications as telecommunications, spectroscopic sensing and metrology, but also represent a key ingredient in quantum information processing and neuromorphic computing.

The research interest in programmable PICs is flourishing and the community is progressively growing. Novel components, platforms and functionalities are continuously being presented, opening up additional applications in various research fields. In light of this, this Special Issue seeks to showcase research papers, short communications, and review articles on the design of innovative programmable PICs, development of materials, technological advances in the fabrication of the optical components and complementary electronics, and groundbreaking applications of these devices.

Dr. Francesco Ceccarelli
Dr. Simone Atzeni
Prof. Dr. Francesco Morichetti
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • Photonic integrated devices
  • Programmable photonic circuits
  • Tunable metasurfaces
  • Linear photonic processors
  • Integrated optical actuators
  • Control and calibration tools for programmable photonic devices

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 10060 KiB  
Article
1-Bit Transmission-Type Digital Programmable Coding Metasurface with Multi-Functional Beam-Shaping Capability for Ka-Band Applications
by Aqeel Hussain Naqvi, Duc Anh Pham, Syed Imran Hussain Shah and Sungjoon Lim
Micromachines 2023, 14(6), 1250; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/mi14061250 - 14 Jun 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1584
Abstract
Digital programmable coding metasurfaces (DPCMs) have recently attracted enormous attention and have been broadly applied, owing to their ability to manipulate electromagnetic (EM) wave behaviours and programmable multi-functionality. Recent DPCM works are divided into reflection and transmission types (R-DPCM and T-DPCM, respectively); however, [...] Read more.
Digital programmable coding metasurfaces (DPCMs) have recently attracted enormous attention and have been broadly applied, owing to their ability to manipulate electromagnetic (EM) wave behaviours and programmable multi-functionality. Recent DPCM works are divided into reflection and transmission types (R-DPCM and T-DPCM, respectively); however, there are only a few reported T-DPCM works in the millimetre-wave spectrum, owing to the difficulty of realising the large-phase controllable range while maintaining low transmission losses with electronic control components. Consequently, most millimetre-wave T-DPCMs are demonstrated only with limited functions in a single design. Additionally, all these designs use high-cost substrate materials that constrain practical applicability, owing to cost-ineffectiveness. Herein, we propose a 1-bit T-DPCM that simultaneously performs three dynamic beam-shaping functions with a single structure for millimetre-wave applications. The proposed structure is completely constructed using low-cost FR-4 materials, and operation of each meta-cell is manipulated using PIN-diodes, thus driving the achievement of multiple effective dynamic functionalities including dual-beam scanning, multi-beam shaping, and orbital-angular-momentum-mode generation. It should be noted that there are no reported millimetre-wave T-DPCMs demonstrating multi-function design, thus showing a gap in the recent literature of millimetre-wave T-DPCMs. Moreover, cost-effectiveness can be significantly enhanced, owing to the construction of the proposed T-DPCM using only low-cost material. Full article
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11 pages, 1798 KiB  
Article
Dynamic Beam Steering and Focusing Graphene Metasurface Mirror Based on Fermi Energy Control
by Sanghyeok Yu, Youngsoo Kim, Eunso Shin and Soon-Hong Kwon
Micromachines 2023, 14(4), 715; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/mi14040715 - 23 Mar 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1502
Abstract
Beam steering technology is crucial for radio frequency and infrared telecommunication signal processing. Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are typically used for beam steering in infrared optics-based fields but have slow operational speeds. An alternative solution is to use tunable metasurfaces. Since graphene has gate-tunable [...] Read more.
Beam steering technology is crucial for radio frequency and infrared telecommunication signal processing. Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are typically used for beam steering in infrared optics-based fields but have slow operational speeds. An alternative solution is to use tunable metasurfaces. Since graphene has gate-tunable optical properties, it is widely used in electrically tunable optical devices due to ultrathin physical thickness. We propose a tunable metasurface structure using graphene in a metal gap structure that can exhibit a fast-operating speed through bias control. The proposed structure can change beam steering and can focus immediately by controlling the Fermi energy distribution on the metasurface, thus overcoming the limitations of MEMS. The operation is numerically demonstrated through finite element method simulations. Full article
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13 pages, 7046 KiB  
Article
Multiband Signal Receiver by Using an Optical Bandpass Filter Integrated with a Photodetector on a Chip
by Xiuyou Han, Meng Chao, Xinxin Su, Weiheng Wang, Shuanglin Fu, Zhenlin Wu and Mingshan Zhao
Micromachines 2023, 14(2), 331; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/mi14020331 - 27 Jan 2023
Viewed by 1153
Abstract
Photonic integration brings the promise of significant cost, power and space savings and propels the real applications of microwave photonic technology. In this paper, a multiband radio frequency (RF) signal simultaneous receiver using an optical bandpass filter (OBPF) integrated with a photodetector (PD) [...] Read more.
Photonic integration brings the promise of significant cost, power and space savings and propels the real applications of microwave photonic technology. In this paper, a multiband radio frequency (RF) signal simultaneous receiver using an optical bandpass filter (OBPF) integrated with a photodetector (PD) on a chip is proposed, which was experimentally demonstrated. The OBPF was composed of ring-assisted Mach–Zehnder interferometer with a periodical bandpass response featuring a box-like spectral shape. The OBPF was connected to a PD and then integrated onto a single silicon photonic chip. Phase-modulated multiband RF signals transmitted from different locations were inputted into the OBPF, by which one RF sideband was filtered out and the phase modulation to intensity modulation conversion was realized. The single sideband with carrier signals were then simultaneously detected by the PD. A proof-of-concept experiment with the silicon photonic integrated chip was implemented to simultaneously receive four channels of 8 GHz, 12 GHz, 14 GHz and 18 GHz in the X- and Ku-bands. The performance of the integrated microwave photonic multiband receiver—including the receiving sensitivity, the spurious free dynamic range, the gain and the noise figure across the whole operation frequency band—was characterized in detail. Full article
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10 pages, 8561 KiB  
Article
Toward Higher Integration Density in Femtosecond-Laser-Written Programmable Photonic Circuits
by Riccardo Albiero, Ciro Pentangelo, Marco Gardina, Simone Atzeni, Francesco Ceccarelli and Roberto Osellame
Micromachines 2022, 13(7), 1145; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/mi13071145 - 19 Jul 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1760
Abstract
Programmability in femtosecond-laser-written integrated circuits is commonly achieved with the implementation of thermal phase shifters. Recent work has shown how such phase shifters display significantly reduced power dissipation and thermal crosstalk with the implementation of thermal isolation structures. However, the aforementioned phase shifter [...] Read more.
Programmability in femtosecond-laser-written integrated circuits is commonly achieved with the implementation of thermal phase shifters. Recent work has shown how such phase shifters display significantly reduced power dissipation and thermal crosstalk with the implementation of thermal isolation structures. However, the aforementioned phase shifter technology is based on a single gold film, which poses severe limitations on integration density and circuit complexity due to intrinsic geometrical constraints. To increase the compactness, we propose two improvements to this technology. Firstly, we fabricated thermal phase shifters with a photolithography process based on two different metal films, namely (1) chromium for microheaters and (2) copper for contact pads and interconnections. Secondly, we developed a novel curved isolation trench design that, along with a state-of-the-art curvature radius, allows for a significant reduction in the optical length of integrated circuits. As a result, curved Cr-Cu phase shifters provide a compact footprint with low parasitic series resistance and no significant increase in power dissipation (∼38 mW) and thermal crosstalk (∼20%). These results pave the way toward the fabrication of femtosecond-laser-written photonic circuits with a steep increase in terms of layout complexity. Full article
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