Materials World Network: Complex Oxides for Heterogeneous Optoelectronic Integration

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TECHNICAL SUMMARY: This US-UK Materials World Network collaboration focuses on adding magneto-optical (MO) and electro-optical (EO) properties that are orders of magnitude greater than currently available to semiconductor photonics by integrating both doped yttrium iron garnet and lithium niobate, respectively, onto III-V structures. With motivations such as source-integrated photonic integrated circuits and electronically-reconfigurable opto-electronic integrated circuits, there has been intense work on adding MO and EO materials to semiconductor platforms. However, complex oxide integration requires thermal crystallization methods together with thermal expansion mismatch, substrate dissociation, and interfacial diffusion. This work aims to converge on a solution involving controlled strain and interfaces using buffer layers and seed layers (both ~10 nm), oxide patterning, and rapid thermal annealing for minimized thermal treatment. Subsequent doping in thicker films is used to meet specifications of maximized MO or EO activity. The optical, magnetic, and electronic properties are characterized to analyze the both the structures and compositions, and the materials performance is tested on carefully designed waveguide structures. In the case of MO integration, non-reciprocity is expected to be realized without the high-power options. Integrated ferroelectric oxides also unlocks doors to EO functionality in both near and long term applications, such as active frequency modulation and reconfigurable photonics.NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: This research project is a collaboration between US and UK scientists. The research focuses on integration of magneto-optical and electro-optical materials with semiconductor materials, opening doors for novel properties such as enhanced magneto-optical activity and new devices such as photonic isolators so that optical sources can be integrated with photonic integrated circuits. The team meets online with tools that enable attendees to see each other's faces, writings and slides, and to hear each other's voices. The pedagogy of these tools will be an interesting side study. In addition, students exchange time in each other's lab to gain important experience with new cultures and new science. It is anticipated that the online/exchange interaction model developed here in international research will be extended to US-Kenya and UK-Pakistan collaborations in the future - building on relationships that are already underway. This project is supported by the Electronic and Photonic Materials program and Office of Special Programs, Division of Materials Research.