Tailored nanostructures and thin-film-processing for temperature stable organic silicon-hybrid-modulators

商用光传输系统在单个波长上实现100 Gb/s的数据速率。未来通信系统的目标是超过1tb /s，以满足全球通信中不断增长的数据速率需求。在文献和申请人自己的初步工作中，硅光子学与有机电光材料的结合提供了有希望的结果，例如电光带宽优于100 GHz。在这个提议中，纳米结构调制器和电光活性有机薄膜的性质应该使用上述有机硅混合调制器的概念进行研究和关联。这个跨学科的项目结合了合成和胶片处理的专业知识（ludwig， IPOC）以及调制器设计和测量技术的专业知识（Berroth， INT）。在集成光子学领域中，研究和制造具有高稳定性的定制电光活性薄膜是目前研究的主要课题。应该研究并实现一种温度稳定的调制器，其光纤对光纤损耗小于4 dB，带宽大于100 GHz，消光比大于20 dB。对双模干涉仪、等离子波导的实现以及利用溶剂蒸汽特殊退火方法对发色团对准的工艺优化进行了评价。除了合成具有高吸电子性质的受体基团的新型发色体外，还计划利用原位交联反应改善温度性质。由于相关机构的合作，研究、制造和优化工作可以在斯图加特完成。

Commercial optical transmission systems achieve data rates of 100 Gb/s on a single wave length. Future systems in communications are targeting for more than 1 Tb/s to meet the worldwide needs of increasing data rates in communications. In literature and in the appli-cants’ own preliminary work, the combination of silicon photonics with organic electro-optical materials offers promising results, e.g. with electro-optical bandwidths better than 100 GHz. In this proposal, the properties of nanostructured modulators and electro-optical active organic films should be investigated and correlated using the mentioned organic silicon-hybrid-modulator concept. The strongly interdisciplinary project combines the expertise of synthesis and film processing (Ludwigs, IPOC) with the expertise of modulator design and measure-ment technology (Berroth, INT). The investigation and fabrication of tailored electro-optical active films with enhanced stability for the application in the field of integrated photonics are main issues. A temperature-stable modulator should be investigated and realized with a fiber-to-fiber loss smaller than 4 dB, achieving bandwidths larger than 100 GHz and extinction ratios of more than 20 dB. The implementation of dual-mode interferometers, plasmonic waveguides and the process optimization of the chromophore alignment with the help of a special annealing-method using solvent vapor will be evaluated. Besides the synthesis of novel chromphores including acceptor-groups with high electron-withdrawing properties, the improvement of the temperature properties with the help of in-situ cross-linking reactions is scheduled. Due to the cooperation of the involved institutes, the investigation, fabrication and optimization can be done in Stuttgart.