Experimental demonstration of a low-loss optical H-tree distribution using silicon-on-insulator microwaveguides

摘要

The experimental demonstration of an optical H-tree distribution from one input to sixteen outputs compatible with the size of a microelectronic chip is reported. It is based on low-loss silicon-on-insulator rib submicron waveguides. Each branch is 1 cm long and includes four ultracompact T splitters and two mirrors allowing 90° direction changes. The mean value of the global losses has been measured and is found equal to 26 dB, which corresponds to a power of 2.6 μW at each output, for a 3 mW laser diode power at the input. This demonstration is an important step for on-chip optical clock distribution in complementary metal-oxide-Semiconductor integrated circuits.