Characterization of silicon photonic devices in the short/medium wavelength infrared (2-5 microns)

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In the last decade, silicon photonics has quickly emerged for large-scale integration and low-cost manufacturing of photonic circuits, providing key solutions to the needs of the data communication industry. It this project we propose to leverage this progress to develop a new generation of sensors for ubiquitous environmental monitoring. Silicon photonics enables fabrication of miniature and power efficient chip-scale spectrometers and laser sensors for real-time monitoring of air, water, and environmental risks, meeting ever increasing individual and public interests in health and security. For these applications, infrared wavelength bands contain signatures of many important molecules, known as molecular fingerprints. Nonetheless, the path toward a mid-IR sensor network has been hindered by cost and energy consumption as existing mid-IR systems consist of discrete optical components interconnected applying free-space optics. Our team has a strong track record in silicon photonics research for optical communications and we have recently initiated a research program to open a new research axis on sensing applications of this technology. We have secured two operating grants to support this effort and have recruited a team of six students and post-doctoral fellow to work on the projects. We are requesting a research tool and instrumentation grant to build a silicon photonics characterization setup. As a first step, we are targeting the short and medium wavelength infrared, from 1.8 to 5 microns. The budget will be used to purchase several lasers, an optical amplifier, and an imaging camera. The equipment is essential to our current research and will have a great impact on our current and future partnerships and collaborations. It will complement the optical spectrum analyzer, power meter and coupling stages for which the $60k budget has already been obtained.