Low loss silicon waveguides for sensing, medicine and communications
Friday 5 August 2011
Researchers from the ATI have reported, for the first time, low loss silicon-on-insulator waveguides at the wavelength as long as 3.4 microns. According to their paper published in Optics Express, the most dominant platform at telecommunications wavelengths, that of silicon-on-insulator, exhibits low losses in the mid-infrared wavelength region.
This is a significant result, as the mid-infrared offers a number of potential applications in environmental and biochemical sensing, medicine, astronomy, infrared countermeasures and free space communications. The results achieved by Dr Mashanovich’s team at Surrey indicate that the expertise gained in the near infrared can be transferred to longer wavelengths eventually resulting in improved, low cost and small optoelectronic integrated circuits suitable for the aforementioned applications. The researchers have also investigated other waveguide structures, such as silicon on porous silicon (in collaboration with the National University of Singapore) to extend the low loss wavelength region. More on their results can be found in the paper available at:
http://www.opticsinfobase.org/oe/abstract.cfm?URI=oe-19-8-7112