Evanescently Coupled Rectangular Microresonators in Silicon-on-Insulator with High Q-Values: Experimental Characterization

Abstract

We report on evanescently coupled rectangular microresonators with dimensions up to 20 × 10 μm2 in silicon-on-insulator in an add-drop filter configuration. The influence of the geometrical parameters of the device was experimentally characterized and a high Q value of 13,000 was demonstrated as well as the multimode optical resonance characteristics in the drop port. We also show a 95% energy transfer between ports when the device is operated in TM-polarization and determine the full symmetry of the device by using an eight-port configuration, allowing the drop waveguide to be placed on any of its sides, providing a way to filter and route optical signals. We used the FDTD method to analyze the device and e-beam lithography and dry etching techniques for fabrication.

Keywords

• rectangular microresonators
• silicon-on-insulator
• photonic devices