Wavelength Conversion of a 9.35-Gb/s RZ OOK Signal in an InP Photonic Crystal Nanocavity

Abstract

Wavelength conversion of a 10-Gb/s (9.35 Gb/s net rate) return-to-zero ON-OFF keying signal is demonstrated using a simple InP photonic crystal H0 nanocavity with Lorentzian line shape. The shifting of the resonance induced by the generation of free-carriers enables the pump intensity modulation to be transferred to a continuous-wave probe with a sufficiently high quality so that the converted signal can be detected with a conventional telecommunication receiver. A clear eye diagram is observed for the converted signal showing a pre-forward error correction bit-error-ratio down to 10 −3 .

Ultrafast low-energy all-optical switching using a photonic-crystal asymmetric Fano structure

“…5(b), the BER increases somewhat, but is still well below the threshold for employing forward error correction (FEC) schemes. Compared with a traditional Lorentzian structure [11], we find that patterning effects are significantly suppressed and the energy consumption is reduced, enabling modulation rates higher than the carrier relaxation rate. This speed enhancement originates from the regeneration characteristics of the nonlinear transfer function of the Fano resonance.…”

An efficient all-optical gate based on photonic crystals cavities and applications

“…[10]. The interest in the PhC/InP approach has been confirmed by the recent results from DTU, who demonstrated all-optical signal processing [13] and LPN, who introduced hybrid Silicon-InP cavities and demonstrated fast processing [14]. In Fig.5, we show the device and the signals used to drive it: the control signal comes from a prototype modelocked diode laser build by Alcatel-Lucent-Thales III-V labs operating at 10 GHz and providing 2 ps long pulses.…”

Ultrafast all-optical modulation using a photonic-crystal Fano structure with broken symmetry

“…An estimated extinction ratio of 10 (7) dB is obtained at 10 (20) Gbit/s for an energy consumption of 76 (148) fJ/bit. Compared with a traditional Lorentzian structure [9], we find that patterning effects are significantly suppressed, enabling modulation rates higher than the carrier relaxation rate. This speed enhancement originates from the regeneration characteristics of the nonlinear transfer function of the Fano resonance [6].…”

“…In that work it was also found that the nonmonotonous frequency dependence of the Fano transmission spectrum implies an inherent reduction of patterning effects. In contrast, a Lorentzian spectrum, with its monotonously varying tails, faithfully converts (slow) dynamics of the resonance shift into amplitude modulation, limiting the bitrate due to the long carrier lifetime [7][8][9][10][11].Here we experimentally demonstrate that by breaking the symmetry of a Fano structure, the switching properties can be further improved. Furthermore, by employing a nanocavity of the H0-type, which has the smallest mode volume of all known PhC defect cavities [2], we are able to further decrease the switching energy.…”

“…In that work it was also found that the nonmonotonous frequency dependence of the Fano transmission spectrum implies an inherent reduction of patterning effects. In contrast, a Lorentzian spectrum, with its monotonously varying tails, faithfully converts (slow) dynamics of the resonance shift into amplitude modulation, limiting the bitrate due to the long carrier lifetime [7][8][9][10][11].…”