Open AccessSilicon photonic microelectromechanical switch using lateral adiabatic waveguide couplers
Author(s) -
Tsuyoshi Nagai,
Kazuhiro Hane
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.26.033906
Subject(s) - optical switch , waveguide , optics , materials science , insertion loss , power dividers and directional couplers , actuator , adiabatic process , hybrid coupler , optoelectronics , microelectromechanical systems , physics , electrical engineering , thermodynamics , engineering
A silicon photonic waveguide switch using adiabatic couplers with lateral comb-drive actuators is designed, fabricated, and tested for microelectromechanical optical matrix switch. One of the waveguides of the adiabatic coupler is moved laterally by three actuators for varying the coupler gap, which enables to switch the path of the waveguides. The coupler waveguides with 250 nm thickness consist of a movable tapered waveguide from 400 nm to 500 nm in width and 50 μm in length and a straight waveguide of 400 nm in width. The three actuators are ultra-small electrostatic comb-drive and move the two movable tapered waveguides. The switch's transmission characteristics were measured as a function of the coupler gap. Around a coupler gap of 109 nm, the port isolation of 16.7 dB was obtained. The switch's insertion loss was roughly estimated to be less than 1 dB. The switching time was 36.7 μsec under the present experimental condition. Moreover, 64 switches were arrayed in a 125 μm period square mash waveguide and an 8 x 8 matrix switch was composed. The matrix switch was also tested.