Optically tunable photoluminescence and upconversion lasing on a chip

Abstract

The ability to tune the wavelength of light emission on a silicon chip is important for scalable photonic networks, distributed photonic sensor networks and next generation computer architectures.Here we demonstrate light emission in a chip-scale optomechanical device, with wide tunablity provided by radiation pressure. To achieve this, we develop an optically active double-disk optomechanical system through implantation of erbium ions. We observe radiation pressure tuning of photoluminescence in the telecommunications band with a wavelength range of 520 pm, green upconversion lasing with a threshold of 340 ± 70 µ W, and optomechanical self-pulsing caused by the interplay of radiation pressure and thermal effects. These results provide a path towards widely-tunable micron-scale lasers for photonic networks.