IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,189,263
Granted Patent B2
US 12,189,263 · App. 17/681,158 · Granted Jan 7, 2025

Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) based integrated modulators

Inventors: Rubab Amin (Fairfax, VA); Volker J. Sorger (Alexandria, VA)
Assignee: The George Washington University
G02F1/225G02F1/025G02F1/0157G02F1/212G02F2203/10
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,189,263
App. No.
17/681,158
Granted
Jan 7, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

A photonic Mach Zehnder Interferometer (MZI) has a first arm with a first photonic waveguide transmitting a first light having a first phase, a second arm with a second photonic waveguide transmitting a second light having a second phase, and a Transparent Conducting Oxide (TCO) based assembly. The TCO assembly is positioned about the first photonic waveguide of the first arm to modulate the first phase of the first light traveling in the first photonic waveguide.

Claims (27)

1. A photonic Mach Zehnder Interferometer (MZI) assembly operating across a broadband spectral region, comprising:

a first arm comprising a first photonic waveguide transmitting a first light having a first phase;

a second arm comprising a second photonic waveguide transmitting a second light having a second phase;

the first arm and the second arm forming a photonic MZI operating across a broadband spectral region;

a gate oxide that contacts and surrounds at least a portion of said first arm; a current-driven Transparent Conducting Oxide (TCO) based assembly that contacts and surrounds at least a portion of the gate oxide;

a voltage source coupled to the current-driven TCO based assembly to apply a voltage to the current driven TCO based assembly to modulate the first phase of the first light traveling in said first photonic waveguide; and

a ground coupled to the first arm or the second arm.

2. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said current-driven TCO based assembly comprises an optical refractive index modulator positioned about said first photonic waveguide to modulate the phase or amplitude, or combination thereof of the light traveling in said first photonic waveguide.

3. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein the current-driven TCO based assembly modulates the first phase of the first light traveling in said first photonic waveguide with respect to the second phase of the second light traveling in said second photonic waveguide, so that the first light is either in-phase with or out-of-phase with the second light.

4. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said first photonic waveguide, said second photonic waveguide, has half wave voltage and length product V π L of 63-520 V·μm.

5. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said current-driven TCO based assembly comprises a first capacitor electrode, and further comprising a second capacitor electrode with a resistive material.

6. The MZI assembly of claim 5 , wherein said resistive material comprises a TCO material, metal, a 2D material, dielectric or doped dielectric, gel material or any combination of these materials thereof.

7. The MZI assembly of claim 5 , wherein said first and second capacitor electrodes are arranged vertically or laterally.

8. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein the ground is coupled to the first arm separated from the current-driven TCO based assembly.

9. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein the ground is coupled to the second arm.

10. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , further comprising a biasing metal contact that contacts and surrounds at least a portion of said current-driven TCO based assembly.

11. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said current-driven TCO based assembly has a plasmonic mode.

12. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said TCO based assembly modulates absorption of the light traveling in said first photonic waveguide resulting in different amplitude at an output of said first photonic waveguide due to changing absorption of the TCO based assembly with bias.

13. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said TCO based assembly modulates the first or second phase or amplitude, or combination thereof of the first and second light traveling in said first or second arm.

14. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said wherein said TCO based assembly comprises Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), Indium-doped Zinc Oxide (IZO), Gallium-doped Zinc Oxide (GZO), Aluminum doped Zinc Oxide (AZO), Fluorine doped Tin Oxide (FTO), Magnesium-doped Zinc Oxide (MZO), Aluminum and Gallium co-doped Zinc Oxide (AGZO), Indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO), Indium oxide (In2O3) or Zinc Oxide (ZnO).

15. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said first and second photonic waveguides comprise Transverse Electric (TE) or Transverse Magnetic (TM) modes, photonic or surface-plasmon-based mode, or a hybrid of photon/plasmon modes.

16. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said TCO based assembly can be integrated into silicon photonics, silicon nitride photonics, III-V based photonics, polymer-based waveguide structures, any oxide or nitride based waveguide platform, or any material forming a waveguide including fiber-based structures.

17. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said TCO based assembly capacitively induces carrier accumulation/depletion leading to a change in an optical index of refraction of the first and second light traveling in said first and second photonic waveguides which modulates the phase and/or amplitude of the first and second light traveling in said first and second photonic waveguides.

18. The MZI assembly of claim 17 , wherein the change in the optical index of refraction can be a real part of the optical index of refraction and/or an imaginary part of the optical index of refraction.

19. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said TCO based assembly comprises a first TCO capacitor electrode, and further comprising a second capacitor electrode comprising a resistive material.

20. The MZI assembly of claim 1 , wherein said TCO based assembly is in close proximity to contacts of said first and second photonic waveguides.

21. The MZI assembly of claim 20 , wherein the close proximity is ≤λ, where λ is the wavelength of light propagating through the said waveguide.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 27, 2022
From: AMIN, RUBAB; SORGER, VOLKER J.
To: THE GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
Reel/Frame 060034/0489 →
Continuity (3)
Division 16545733 · Aug 20, 2019
Provisional Application 62719988 · Aug 20, 2018
Related Publication 20220179279A1 · Jun 9, 2022
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