| Patent application number | Description | Published |
|---|
| 20100215309 | ELECTRICAL CONTACTS ON TOP OF WAVEGUIDE STRUCTURES FOR EFFICIENT OPTICAL MODULATION IN SILICON PHOTONIC DEVICES - A phase modulation waveguide structure includes one of a semiconductor and a semiconductor-on-insulator substrate, a doped semiconductor layer formed over the one of a semiconductor and a semiconductor-on-insulator substrate, the doped semiconductor portion including a waveguide rib protruding from a surface thereof not in contact with the one of a semiconductor and a semiconductor-on-insulator substrate, and an electrical contact on top of the waveguide rib. The electrical contact is formed of a material with an optical refractive index close to that of a surrounding oxide layer that surrounds the waveguide rib and the electrical contact and lower than the optical refractive index of the doped semiconductor layer. During propagation of an optical mode within the waveguide structure, the electrical contact isolates the optical mode between the doped semiconductor layer and a metal electrode contact on top of the electrical contact. | 08-26-2010 |
| 20100247021 | OPTICAL DEVICE WITH LARGE THERMAL IMPEDANCE - Embodiments of an optical device, an array of optical devices, and a technique for fabricating the optical device or the array are described. This optical device is implemented on a substrate (such as silicon), and includes a thermally tunable optical waveguide that has good thermal isolation from its surroundings. In particular, a portion of a semiconductor in the optical device, which includes the optical waveguide, is free standing above a gap between the semiconductor layer and the substrate. By reducing the thermal coupling between the optical waveguide and the external environment, the optical device can be thermally tuned with significantly less power consumption. | 09-30-2010 |
| 20100247022 | DUAL-LAYER THERMALLY TUNED OPTICAL DEVICE - Embodiments of an optical device, an array of optical devices, and a technique for fabricating the optical device or the array are described. This optical device is implemented using two semiconductor layers (such as silicon), one of which includes a heater and the other includes a thermally tunable optical waveguide. Spatially separating these two functions in the optical device results in more efficient heat transfer between the heater and the optical waveguide, reduced heat transfer to the surroundings, and reduced optical losses in the optical waveguide relative to existing silicon-based optical devices. | 09-30-2010 |
| 20100247029 | THERMAL TUNING OF AN OPTICAL DEVICE - Embodiments of an optical device, an array of optical devices, and a technique for fabricating the optical device or the array are described. This optical device is implemented on a substrate (such as silicon), and includes a thermally tunable optical waveguide with a high thermal resistance to the surrounding external environment and a low thermal resistance to a localized heater. In particular, the thermal resistances associated with thermal dissipation paths from a heater in the optical device to an external environment via electrodes and via the substrate are increased, while the thermal resistance between the optical waveguide and the heater is decreased. | 09-30-2010 |
| 20100290736 | OPTICAL DEVICE WITH LARGE THERMAL IMPEDANCE - Embodiments of an optical device, an array of optical devices, and a technique for fabricating the optical device or the array are described. This optical device is implemented on a substrate (such as silicon), and includes a thermally tunable optical waveguide that has good thermal isolation from its surroundings. In particular, a portion of a semiconductor in the optical device, which includes the optical waveguide, is free standing above a gap between the semiconductor layer and the substrate. By reducing the thermal coupling between the optical waveguide and the external environment, the optical device can be thermally tuned with significantly less power consumption. | 11-18-2010 |
| 20100329685 | OPTICAL DEVICE WITH REDUCED THERMAL TUNING ENERGY - An optical device that includes multiple optical modulators having actual operating wavelengths at a given temperature is described. Because of differences between the actual operating wavelengths and target operating wavelengths of the optical modulators, heating elements may be used to thermally tune the optical modulators so that the actual operating wavelengths match corresponding carrier wavelengths in a set of optical signals. Furthermore, control logic in the optical device may assign the optical modulators to the corresponding carrier wavelengths based at least on differences between the carrier wavelengths and the actual operating wavelengths, thereby reducing an average thermal tuning energy associated with the heating elements. | 12-30-2010 |
| 20110235962 | OPTICAL DEVICE WITH HIGH THERMAL TUNING EFFICIENCY - An optical device with high thermal tuning efficiency is described. This optical device may be implemented using a tri-layer structure (silicon-on-insulator technology), including: a substrate, a buried-oxide layer and a semiconductor layer. In particular, a thermally tunable optical waveguide may be defined in the semiconductor layer. Furthermore, a portion of the substrate under the buried-oxide layer and substantially beneath a location of the thermally tunable optical waveguide is fabricated so that a portion of the buried-oxide layer is exposed. In this way, the thermal impedance between the thermally tunable optical waveguide and an external environment is increased, and power consumption associated with thermal tuning of the optical waveguide is reduced. | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110255823 | SLOTTED OPTICAL WAVEGUIDE WITH ELECTRO-OPTIC MATERIAL - An optical waveguide is described. This optical waveguide may be defined in a semiconductor layer, and may include a vertical slot that includes an electro-optic material having an electric-field-dependent index of refraction, and the electro-optic material may be other than a semiconductor in the semiconductor layer. Alternatively, the optical waveguide may include a vertical stack with two semiconductor layers that surround and partially overlap an intermediate layer, which includes the electro-optic material. | 10-20-2011 |
