Single waveguide silicon-organic hybrid modulator

Abstract

We present a novel silicon-organic hybrid modulator based on an integrated dual-mode interferometer. The modulator offers a compact, simplified design and enhanced robustness to on-chip fluctuations of temperature compared to conventional Mach-Zehnder based systems. A prototype modulator showing a voltage dependent transmission spectrum is obtained by cladding a dual-mode waveguide in a 250 nm silicon-on-insulator technology with a customized organic electro-optic layer. Estimated phase shifts and corresponding figures of merit are discussed in this contribution. The used organic layer is based on the guest-host approach with customized donor-π-acceptor chromophore embedded and poled in a poly(methylmethacrylate) matrix. The presented prototype is to the best of the authors' knowledge the first integrated single waveguide silicon-organic hybrid modulator.