POLYMER MICRO-RING RESONATOR DEVICE AND FABRICATION METHOD

摘要

A polymer micro-ring resonator and a method of manufacturing the same that is capable of providing reduced surface roughness and improved submicron gap separation between a waveguide and a micro-ring. Nanoimprinting is employed to achieve these advantages without the need for a final lithography and etching step. According to a first method, a hard mold is used to directly imprint a polymer film to form optical waveguides in micro-ring devices. A second method employs a template filling approach, which allows a thicker waveguide to be fabricated, as well as polymers that are difficult to directly imprint. Later buffering of the substrate is used to form pedestal structures under the waveguide and micro-ring for improved performance.