1. Millimeter-wave generation using hybrid silicon photonics
- Author
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Jacob Drasbæk, Simon Rommel, Lars Peter Nielsen, Peter Tønning, Pengli An, Iterio Degli-Eredi, Martijn J. R. Heck, Idelfonso Tafur Monroy, Hakimeh Mohammadhosseini, Terahertz Photonic Systems, Terahertz Systems, Electro-Optical Communication, Photonic Integration, Center for Terahertz Science and Technology Eindhoven, Center for Wireless Technology Eindhoven, and Center for Quantum Materials and Technology Eindhoven
- Subjects
microwave photonics ,Computer science ,Terahertz radiation ,millimeter-wave photonics ,Photodetector ,Physics::Optics ,photonic integrated circuits ,Optics ,hybrid silicon photonics ,Electronic engineering ,SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy ,Signal processing ,Silicon photonics ,silicon photonics ,business.industry ,Photonic integrated circuit ,Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics ,Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials ,visual_art ,Electronic component ,Extremely high frequency ,visual_art.visual_art_medium ,Photonics ,business ,SDG 7 – Betaalbare en schone energie - Abstract
Technological innovation with millimeter waves (mm waves), signals having carrier frequencies between 30 and 300 GHz, has become an increasingly important research field. While it is challenging to generate and distribute these high frequency signals using all-electronic means, photonic techniques that transfer the signals to the optical domain for processing can alleviate several of the issues that plague electronic components. By realizing optical signal processing in a photonic integrated circuit (PIC), one can considerably improve the performance, footprint, cost, weight, and energy efficiency of photonics-based mm-wave technologies. In this article, we detail the applications that rely on mm-wave generation and review the requirements for photonics-based technologies to achieve this functionality. We give an overview of the different PIC platforms, with a particular focus on hybrid silicon photonics, and detail how the performance of two key components in the generation of mm waves, photodetectors and modulators, can be optimized in these platforms. Finally, we discuss the potential of hybrid silicon photonics for extending mm-wave generation towards the THz domain and provide an outlook on whether these mm-wave applications will be a new milestone in the evolution of hybrid silicon photonics.
- Published
- 2021
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