Photonic integrated circuit using chip integration

Abstract

We disclose a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) having a first photonic chip and a second photonic chip that are bonded and optically coupled to one another in a manner that reduces the number of different photonic chips that need to be integrated into the same PIC package to achieve a desired electro-optical function. In an example embodiment, the first photonic chip may include active optical components, such as lasers and optical amplifiers, and be fabricated using the III-V semiconductor technology. The second photonic chip may include additional optical components, such as modulators, photodetectors, and passive optical components, and be fabricated using the CMOS technology. The second photonic chip may also include one or more 2×2 optical couplers configured to appropriately (re)direct various optical signals between the active optical components of the first photonic chip and the additional optical components of the second photonic chip to achieve the desired electro-optical function.