International Business Machines Corporation

Marc Seifried

Thomas E Morf

Daniel Michael Kuchta

Folkert Horst

Christian I Menolfi

Alessandro Cevrero

Ilter Özkaya

Herwig Hahn

Utz Herwig Hahn

Lukas Czornomaz

Jean Fompeyrine

Stefan Abel

Gustavo Ferreira Villares

The present invention is notably directed to an electro-optical device. The latter comprises a layer structure with: a silicon substrate; a buried oxide layer over the silicon substrate; a tapered silicon waveguide core over the buried oxide layer, the silicon waveguide core cladded by a first cladding structure; a bonding layer over the first cladding structure; and a stack of III-V semiconductor gain materials on the bonding layer, the stack of III-V semiconductor gain materials cladded by a second cladding structure. The layer structure is configured to optically couple radiation between the stack of III-V semiconductor gain materials and the tapered silicon waveguide core. The first cladding structure comprises a material having: a refractive index that is larger than 1.54 for said radiation; and a bandgap, which, in energy units, is larger than an average energy of said radiation.

Electro-optical and optoelectronic devices

The invention is directed to a hybrid, vertical current injection electro-optical device, comprising an active region and one or more current blocking layers. The active region includes a stack of III-V semiconductor gain materials designed for optical amplification. The gain materials of the stack are stacked along a stacking direction z, which is perpendicular to a main plane of the stack. The one or more current blocking layers extend perpendicularly to the stacking direction z and laterally on opposite sides of the active region. The one or more current blocking layers each have an effective refractive index nthat is matched to the effective refractive index n of the active region, i.e., n=f&#xd7;n, with f&#x2208;[0.95; 1.05]. The invention is further directed to a silicon photonics chip comprising such an electro-optical device.

Hybrid vertical current injection electro-optical device with refractive-index-matched current blocking layer

Devices and methods are provided to reduce the wake-up time of a Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser (VCSEL) used in a data communication link. For example, in one aspect, a method for optical communications includes, in an optical communication device including a light-emitting device, applying a bias current to the light-emitting device and transmitting a pulse to the light-emitting device before transmitting a preamble signal or data signal to the light-emitting device, wherein the pulse has a voltage greater than a highest voltage of the preamble signal or data signal.

VCSEL based optical links in burst mode

The present invention is notably directed to an electro-optical device. This device has a layer structure, which comprises a stack of III-V semiconductor gain materials, an n-doped layer and a p-doped layer. The III-V materials are stacked along a stacking direction z, which is perpendicular to a main plane of the stack. The n-doped layer extends essentially parallel to the main plane of the stack, on one side thereof. The p-doped layer too extends essentially parallel to this main plane, but on another side thereof. A median vertical plane can be defined in the layer structure, which plane is parallel to the stacking direction z and perpendicular to the main plane of the stack. Now, the device further comprises two sets of ohmic contacts, wherein the ohmic contacts of each set are configured for vertical current injection in the stack of III-V semiconductor gain materials.

Electro-optical device with asymmetric, vertical current injection ohmic contacts

A hybrid III-V on silicon laser device includes a layer structure, with a stack of III-V semiconductor gain materials, a silicon waveguide core and a cladding structure. The semiconductor gain materials stack is along a stacking direction, which is perpendicular to a main plane of the stack. The silicon waveguide core extends along a longitudinal direction, parallel to the main plane. The cladding structure extends between said waveguide core and the stack. The device further comprises an optical coupling structure formed in the layer structure. This coupling structure is designed: 1) to allow a hybrid-mode optical coupling of radiation between the stack of III-V semiconductor gain materials and the tapered waveguide core; and 2) to favor a coupling of a fundamental transverse optical mode of said radiation over a coupling of one or more higher-order transverse optical modes of said radiation from the stack into the waveguide core.

Growing community of inventors

Zurich, Switzerland

Marc Seifried