Heteroepitaxially Integrated Compound Semiconductor Optical Devices with On-Chip Waveguides

Integrated photonics platforms are essential in multiple fields, including telecommunications, data communications, and sensing applications. The need for efficient optical interconnects has grown with the increased demand for high-speed data transmission and integrated circuit miniaturization. However, combining different material waveguides, such as SiNx and III-V compounds, has presented challenges including material incompatibility and integration techniques. Existing approaches often face difficulties in effectively coupling different material waveguides, leading to signal loss and decreased performance. Traditional integration methods also encounter high threading dislocation densities (TDD), which can degrade the performance of optoelectronic devices. Consequently, there is a significant need for improved integration methods capable of reducing TDD and enhancing device performance without compromising the advantages of diverse material properties.

Technology Description

This technology is a III-V/SiNx hybrid integrated photonics platform, featuring a wafer that integrates SiNx waveguides and III-V waveguides heteroepitaxially grown from the silicon substrate. These waveguides are lithographically formed to butt couple seamlessly, resulting in efficient optical coupling with a loss transition as low as −2.5 dB. The platform's novel approach to aligning different waveguide materials enables enhanced data transmission efficiency in photonic circuits. This platform differentiates itself through a threading dislocation density (TDD) of as low as 4×10⁶ cm⁻² in the III-V waveguides. The low TDD is critical as it permits the parallel fabrication of integrated III-V optoelectronic devices, enabling the creation of complex photonic integrated circuits with multiple active components. The improved TDD opens possibilities for higher quality and performance in a variety of optoelectronic applications.