Collaborative Research: PIC: Slow Wave Enhanced Electrooptically Tuned Michelson Interferometer Biosensor for On-Chip Dual Polarization Interferometry

2020年的COVID大流行表明，全球需要对各种病原体进行低成本、高灵敏度、快速的诊断检测。虽然硅光子学使这种高度多路无标签传感能力具有极高的灵敏度，但手持式低成本硅纳米光子传感器仍然缺失。制造上的缺陷使得固定波长激光和单一探测器的光子传感器难以实现。光子测量的变化也来自于纳米光子柱和纳米光子沟的结合不确定性。本提案的基础工作采用了一种新颖的片上双偏振干涉技术，该技术将减少光子测量的可变性，并采用新颖的电路实现，以实现电驱动和电读出低成本的片上纳米光子传感器。该装置的工作原理和电路实现克服了制造和测量的限制，这在以前没有被证明过。在300毫米CMOS代工厂，即AIM Photonics，最先进的光子器件制造能力，单片集成无源和有源电偏光子元件将被用于该项目。该项目将涉及来自代顿大学和北德克萨斯大学的光学、工程、材料科学和物理专业的学生，他们不仅将学习最前沿的科学、技术、工程和数学研究，还将学习下一代协集成电子-光子器件的铸造制造的计算机辅助设计布局。该项目还将与代顿早期大学学院的微生物学学生和教师以及代顿、俄亥俄州和得克萨斯州丹顿地区的其他中学生和高中生合作。手持传感器将在癌症诊断、传染病和阿片类药物诊断、环境污染监测以及新药发现等生物传感的各个领域得到应用。该项目的技术目标是(a)展示慢光增强干涉芯片的原理；(b)研究硅芯片上新型薄膜电光移相器；(c)实时双偏振干涉；(d)展示了一种前所未有的制造容忍硅纳米光子传感器，该传感器在具有电驱动和电读出的紧凑封装中运行。该课程将使学生接触到包括光刻、光子学、电子工程、物理学、生物化学和材料科学在内的跨学科研究。该项目最终将开发出usb供电的手持光学生物传感器套件。项目成员将针对俄亥俄州大代顿县和德克萨斯州大丹顿县的初高中学生进行科学和技术推广。项目活动将扩大少数族裔学生对STEM教育和培训的参与。学生将接触到一个创新生态系统，并获得实际的科学和技术经验。最后，该项目将有助于解决当前在半导体芯片设计和制造方面建立美国人力资源的重大需求。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The COVID pandemic of 2020 demonstrated the worldwide need for low-cost, highly sensitive, rapiddiagnostic testing of diverse pathogens. While silicon photonics enables such a highly multiplexed labelfreesensing capability with extremely high sensitivities, a handheld low-cost silicon nanophotonic sensoris still missing. Fabrication imperfections have made photonic sensor implementations difficult with a fixedwavelength laser and a single detector. Photonic measurement variabilities also arise from bindinguncertainties in nanophotonic pillars and trenches. The fundamental work in this proposal employs a novelon-chip dual polarization interferometry technique that will reduce photonic measurement variability, andnovel circuit implementations to enable electrically driven and electrically readout low-cost on-chipnanophotonic sensors. The working principle of the device, and circuit implementations of the device toovercome fabrication and measurement limitations have not been previously demonstrated. The state-ofthe-art photonic device fabrication capabilities at a 300 mm CMOS foundry, namely AIM Photonics, withmonolithically integrated passive and active electrically biased photonic components will be employed inthis project. The project will involve students in optics, engineering, materials science, and physics fromthe University of Dayton and the University of North Texas who will not only learn about cutting-edgeSTEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) research but also in computer aided designlayouts for foundry fabrication of next-generation co-integrated electronic-photonic devices. The projectwill also work with students and faculty in microbiology from the Dayton Early College Academy, andother middle and high school students in the greater Dayton, OH and Denton, TX areas. The handheldsensors will find applications in various domains of biological sensing for cancer diagnostics, infectiousdisease and opioid diagnostics, and environmental pollution monitoring as also in new drug discovery.The technical goals of this project will (a) demonstrate the principle of slow light enhanced interferometryon-chip; (b) investigate novel thin-film electro-optic phase shifters on silicon chip; (c) demonstrate on-chipreal time dual polarization interferometry; and (d) demonstrate an unprecedented fabrication tolerant siliconnanophotonic sensor operating in a compact package with electrical drive and electrical readout. Theprogram will expose students to interdisciplinary research encompassing lithography, photonics, electricalengineering, physics, biochemistry, and materials science. The project will culminate with the developmentof a USB-powered handheld optical biosensor kit. Project members will engage in science and technologyoutreach targeting middle and high school students in greater Dayton, OH and greater Denton, TX counties.Project activities will outreach to broaden the participation of minority students in STEM education andtraining. Students will be exposed to an innovation ecosystem with hands-on science and technologyexperience. Finally, the project will help to address the significant current need to build US-basedmanpower in the design and manufacturing of semiconductor chips.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.