Optical modelling of a Si-based DBR laser source using a nanocrystal Si-sensitized Er-doped silica rib waveguide in the C-band

The availability of reliable silicon-based laser sources is at the basis of the integration of photonic and microelectronic devices on a single chip with consequent development of wavelength division multiplexing telecommunication systems. A high efficiency Si-based laser source with good stability at room temperature would encourage and push the large scale of integration of electronic and photonic devices within a single chip. Several techniques have been proposed for generating light with an internal quantum efficiency some order of magnitude greater than that typical of silicon (10-6) by using either electrical or optical pumping. Among them we mention the improvement of some fabrication process steps, reduction of the channels of non-radiative recombination, quantum confinement, the use of silicon nanocrystals (Si-ncs) incorporated in a silica matrix. This last technique is used in combination with Er3+ doping to generate light emission around 1500 nm in silicon, since Er-doped Si-ncs behave as electron-hole pairs trap, and the presence of Er shifts the emission peak to around 1500 nm. In this paper we have pointed out the optical model of a Si-based DBR laser including a Si-ncs Er-doped SiO2 rib waveguide, working at a wavelength in C-band. In particular, after a brief description of the structural and optical properties of the silicon crystals, we report on the model and design of the Er:Si-nc/SiO2 rib waveguide, of the optical cavity and of the Bragg mirrors. Numerical results are in good agreement with the literature

Quality factor and finesse optimization in buried InGaAsP/InP ring resonators

Quality factor and finesse of buried In1-xGaxAsyP1-y / InP ring resonators have been optimized in this paper by a very general modelling technique. Limiting effect of propagation loss within the ring has been investigated using a three-dimensional (3D) highly accurate complex mode solver based on mode matching method to analyze bending loss dependence on ring radius and wavelength. Coupling between straight input/output (I/O) bus waveguides and ring resonator has been studied by 3D Beam Propagation Method (BPM), deriving coupling loss and coupling coefficient for a large range of ring radius and bus waveguides-ring distance values (for both polarizations). Ring resonator has been modelled by the transfer-matrix approach, while finesse and quality factor dependence on radius has been estimated for two resonator architectures (including one or two I/O bus waveguides) and for quasi-TE and quasi-TM modes. Guiding structure has been optimized to enhance resonator performance. The modelling approach has been validated by comparing results obtained by our algorithm with experimental data reported in literature. Influence of rejection (at resonance wavelength) at through port on quality factor and finesse has been widely discussed. A quality factor larger than 8 x 105 has been predicted for the ring resonator employing only one I/O bus waveguide and having a radius of 400 μm. This resonator exhibits a rejection of -8 dB at through port

Design of a high-performance optical tweezer for nanoparticle trapping

Integrated optical nanotweezers offer a novel paradigm for optical trapping, as their ability to confine light at the nanoscale leads to extremely high gradient forces. To date, nanotweezers have been realized either as photonic crystal or as plasmonic nanocavities. Here, we propose a nanotweezer device based on a hybrid photonic/plasmonic cavity with the goal of achieving a very high quality factor-to-mode volume (Q/V) ratio. The structure includes a 1D photonic crystal dielectric cavity vertically coupled to a bowtie nanoantenna. A very high Q/V ~ 107 (λ/n)−3 with a resonance transmission T = 29 % at λR = 1381.1 nm has been calculated by 3D finite element method, affording strong light–matter interaction and making the hybrid cavity suitable for optical trapping. A maximum optical force F = −4.4 pN, high values of stability S = 30 and optical stiffness k = 90 pN/nm W have been obtained with an input power Pin = 1 mW, for a polystyrene nanoparticle with a diameter of 40 nm. This performance confirms the high efficiency of the optical nanotweezer and its potential for trapping living matter at the nanoscale, such as viruses, proteins and small bacteria

Phononic and photonic band gap structures: modelling and applications

AbstractPhotonic crystals (PhCs) are artificial materials with a permittivity which is a periodic function of the position, with a period comparable to the wavelength of light. The most interesting characteristic of such materials is the presence of photonic band gaps (PBGs). PhCs have very interesting properties of light confinement and localization together with the strong reduction of the device size, orders of magnitude less than the conventional photonic devices, allowing a potential very high scale of integration. These structures possess unique characteristics enabling to operate as optical waveguides, high Q resonators, selective filters, lens or superprism. The ability to mould and guide light leads naturally to novel applications in several fields.Band gap formation in periodic structures also pertains to elastic wave propagation. Composite materials with elastic coefficients which are periodic functions of the position are named phononic crystals. They have properties similar to those of photonic crystals and corresponding applications too. By properly choosing the parameters one may obtain phononic crystals (PhnCs) with specific frequency gaps. An elastic wave, whose frequency lies within an absolute gap of a phononic crystal, will be completely reflected by it. This property allows realizing non-absorbing mirrors of elastic waves and vibration-free cavities which might be useful in high-precision mechanical systems operating in a given frequency range. Moreover, one can use elastic waves to study phenomena such as those associated with disorder, in more or less the same manner as with electromagnetic waves.The authors present in this paper an introductory survey of the basic concepts of these new technologies with particular emphasis on their main applications, together with a description of some modelling approaches

Ultra-high Q/V hybrid cavity for strong light-matter interaction

The ability to confine light at the nanoscale continues to excite the research community, with the ratio between quality factor Q and volume V, i.e., the Q/V ratio, being the key figure of merit. In order to achieve strong light-matter interaction, however, it is important to confine a lot of energy in the resonant cavity mode. Here, we demonstrate a novel cavity design that combines a photonic crystal nanobeam cavity with a plasmonic bowtie antenna. The nanobeam cavity is optimised for a good match with the antenna and provides a Q of 1700 and a transmission of 90%. Combined with the bowtie, the hybrid photonic-plasmonic cavity achieves a Q of 800 and a transmission of 20%, both of which remarkable achievements for a hybrid cavity. The ultra-high Q/V of the hybrid cavity is of order of 106 (λ/n)−3, which is comparable to the state-of-the-art of photonic resonant cavities. Based on the high Q/V and the high transmission, we demonstrate the strong efficiency of the hybrid cavity as a nanotweezer for optical trapping. We show that a stable trapping condition can be achieved for a single 200 nm Au bead for a duration of several minutes (ttrap > 5 min) and with very low optical power (Pin = 190 μW)

Recent advances in miniaturized optical gyroscopes

Low-cost chip-scale optoelectronic gyroscopes having a resolution ≤ 10 °/h and a good reliability also in harsh environments could have a strong impact on the medium/high performance gyro market, which is currently dominated by well-established bulk optical angular velocity sensors. The R&D activity aiming at the demonstration of those miniaturized sensors is crucial for aerospace/defense industry, and thus it is attracting an increasing research effort and notably funds.  In this paper the recent technological advances on the compact optoelectronic gyroscopes with low weight and high energy saving are reviewed. Attention is paid to both the so-called gyroscope-on-a-chip, which is a novel sensor, at the infantile stage, whose optical components are monolithically integrated on a single indium phosphide chip, and to a new ultra-high Q ring resonator for gyro applications with a configuration including a 1D photonic crystal in the resonant path. The emerging field of the gyros based on passive ring cavities, which have already shown performance comparable with that of optical fiber gyros, is also discussed

Molecular Physics of Elementary Processes relevant to Hypersonics: atom-molecule, molecule-molecule and atom-surface processes.

In the present chapter some prototype gas and gas-surface processes occurring within the hypersonic flow layer surrounding spacecrafts at planetary entry are discussed. The discussion is based on microscopic dynamical calculations of the detailed cross sections and rate coefficients performed using classical mechanics treatments for atoms, molecules and surfaces. Such treatment allows the evaluation of the efficiency of thermal processes (both at equilibrium and nonequilibrium distributions) based on state-to-state and state specific calculations properly averaged over the population of the initial states. The dependence of the efficiency of the considered processes on the initial partitioning of energy among the various degrees of freedom is discussed

Theoretical investigation on the scale factor of a triple ring cavity to be used in frequency sensitive resonant gyroscopes

In this paper we study a multi-ring resonant structure including three evanescently coupled ring resonators (named triple ring resonator,TRR), with different ring radii and coupling coefficients, and coupled to two bus waveguides. The potential application of a TRR as a rotationsensor is analyzed and its advantages over a single ring resonator (SRR) under rotation conditions are also highlighted. When the coupledrings have different size and their inter-ring coupling coefficients are lower than the ring-bus coupling coefficients, the resonance frequencydifference between two counter-propagating beams induced by rotation is enhanced with respect to that of a single ring resonator (SRR)with the same footprint. The scale factor of the rotating TRR, which depends on the structural parameters (i.e. inter-ring and ring-buscoupling coefficients, lengths of the rings, overall propagation loss within the rings), is up to 1.88 times the value of the scale factor of aSRR, which depends only on the ring radius, by assuming that the waveguide structure in both configurations is the same. This promisingnumerical achievement results in a reduction of the sensor footprint of about two times, with respect to a single ring with the same scalefactor. The results obtained may be useful to define new configurations of frequency sensitive optical gyros in low-loss technology, havinga small volume. In fact, by properly choosing the structural parameters, the spectral response of the TRR is forced to assume a shape moresensitive to the resonant frequency shift due to the rotation with respect to that one of a SRR

Phylogenetic Study of Plant Q-type C2H2 Zinc Finger Proteins and Expression Analysis of Poplar Genes in Response to Osmotic, Cold and Mechanical Stresses

Plant Q-type C2H2 zinc finger transcription factors play an important role in plant tolerance to various environmental stresses such as drought, cold, osmotic stress, wounding and mechanical loading. To carry out an improved analysis of the specific role of each member of this subfamily in response to mechanical loading in poplar, we identified 16 two-fingered Q-type C2H2-predicted proteins from the poplar Phytozome database and compared their phylogenetic relationships with 152 two-fingered Q-type C2H2 protein sequences belonging to more than 50 species isolated from the NR protein database of NCBI. Phylogenetic analyses of these Q-type C2H2 proteins sequences classified them into two groups G1 and G2, and conserved motif distributions of interest were established. These two groups differed essentially in their signatures at the C-terminus of their two QALGGH DNA-binding domains. Two additional conserved motifs, MALEAL and LVDCHY, were found only in sequences from Group G1 or from Group G2, respectively. Functional significance of these phylogenetic divergences was assessed by studying transcript accumulation of six poplar C2H2 Q-type genes in responses to abiotic stresses; but no group specificity was found in any organ. Further expression analyses focused on PtaZFP1 and PtaZFP2, the two genes strongly induced by mechanical loading in poplars. The results revealed that these two genes were regulated by several signalling molecules including hydrogen peroxide and the phytohormone jasmonate