Silicon large-scale optical switches using MZIs and dual-ring assisted MZIs

We report our recent progress on high-throughput 16×16 silicon non-blocking optical switches based on Mach- Zehnder interferometers (MZIs) and dual-ring assisted MZIs (DR-MZIs). TiN microheaters and p-i-n diodes are both integrated in each switch element for thermo-optic phase error correction and GHz-speed electro-optic switching, respectively. The MZI switch exhibits a broad optical bandwidth and low crosstalk. The DR-MZI switch exhibits low electrical switching power but with a narrower optical bandwidth. The two types of switches are designed to have a chip size of 12.1 mm × 4.6 mm mainly restricted by the chip package requirement. The DR-MZI chip can potentially have a smaller footprint due to its much more compact switch element, suitable for high-density on-chip optical data exchange.

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