I-Corps: Processing of high-performance optical isolator materials using magneto-optical garnets on Si wafers

I-Corps：在硅晶圆上使用磁光石榴石加工高性能光学隔离器材料

• 批准号: 2043044
• 负责人: Bethanie Stadler
• 金额: $ 5万
• 依托单位: University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-01-01 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2043044&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Corps; Processing; performance; optical; isolator

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of materials to improve communications. Current designs of certain components are limited to discrete bulk components that a have large footprint, need expensive raw materials and require a labor-intensive assembly processes. The proposed technology will greatly simplify optical isolator manufacturing and performance. Applications for this technology include 5G wireless networks, data centers, and Internet of Things, and potentially photonic integrated circuits (PICs), which offer significant power, space and cost savings along with increased functionality for future communications systems. This I-Corps project is based on the development of garnet-on-silicon optical isolator. Optical fiber technology has revolutionized communications, but expense and assembly difficulties have prevented step-function improvements. A hidden component in this expense is the optical isolator that sits in front of each laser to block reflections that otherwise interfere with the laser’s performance and lifetime. Composed of a thick iron garnet film, grown on a single-crystal garnet substrate, the isolator is also the likely roadblock in the expansion of fiber success. The proposed technology enables the processing of high-performance magneto-optical garnets on Si wafers with oxide multilayers for optical resonance that enables isolation with 1000x thinner garnet films. In addition, revolutionary garnet compositions and designs may provide magnet-free isolators. Together, these features may reduce cost and ease device assembly. The use of Si as a substrate also enables integrated device manufacturing, rather than “pick and place” assembly methods of commercial products today. With low-magnetization garnet compositions that maintain high Faraday rotations, this technology will have negligible dipole fields, and devices already have been designed that do not require external magnetic bias. These large-scale, inexpensive, magnet-free garnets open many applications in communications.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该I-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是开发改善通信的材料。某些组件的当前设计仅限于具有大占地面积，需要昂贵的原材料并需要实验室密集型装配过程的离散散装组件。提出的技术将大大简化光学隔离器的制造和性能。该技术的应用程序包括5G无线网络，数据中心和物联网以及潜在的光子集成电路（PICS），这些电路（图片）可提供大量的功率，空间和成本节省，以及提高未来通信系统的功能。这个I-Corps项目基于塞利康岛式光学隔离器的开发。光纤技术已经彻底改变了通信，但是费用和组装困难阻止了阶跃功能的改进。这笔费用中的一个隐藏组件是坐在每个激光器前面的光学隔离器，以阻止反射，否则会干扰激光的性能和寿命。该隔离器由在单晶石榴石底物上生长的厚铁石榴石膜组成，这也是纤维成功扩展的可能的障碍。提出的技术使使用氧化物多层的Si Wavers上的高性能磁光石榴石进行了光学共振，从而可以使用1000倍薄的石榴石膜进行隔离。此外，革命性的石榴石组成和设计可能提供无磁性隔离器。这些功能一起可以降低成本并轻松设备组件。使用SI作为底物还可以实现集成的设备制造，而不是当今商业产品的“选择和地点”装配方法。使用低磁性石榴石组合物可以维持高大的法拉第旋转，该技术将具有可忽略的偶极磁场，并且已经设计了不需要外部磁性偏置的设备。这些大规模，廉价，无磁性石榴石在通信中开放了许多应用程序。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并使用基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛的影响审查标准，通过评估来诚实地获得支持。

项目成果

Crystallization of high gyrotropy garnets with decreasing thermal processing budgets as analyzed by electron backscatter diffraction

通过电子背散射衍射分析，随着热处理预算的减少，高回旋石榴石的结晶

• DOI: 10.1364/ome.476482
• 发表时间: 2023
• 期刊: Optical Materials Express
• 影响因子: 2.8
• 作者: Srinivasan, Karthik;Seaton, Nicholas C. A.;Peng, Ruoming;Li, Mo;Stadler, Bethanie J. H.
• 通讯作者: Stadler, Bethanie J. H.

Diffusion-Driven Exfoliation of Magneto-Optical Garnet Nanosheets: Implications for Low Thermal Budget Integration in Si Photonics

• DOI: 10.1021/acsanm.1c02459
• 发表时间: 2021-10
• 作者: Karthik Srinivasan;Andrew D. Schwarz;Jason C. Myers;N. Seaton;B. Stadler