Development of small Silicon modulators in Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI)

Silicon-based optical modulators are expected to be important components in some optical networks. The optical modulation mechanism can be achieved either via the plasma dispersion effect, or by thermal means. Both are relatively slow processes when utilized in large (multi micron) waveguide structures, which researchers tend to concentrate on for ease of coupling. Using large waveguide structures limits the operating speed and hence excludes the applicability of these devices in areas where higher speeds are required. This limitation could be overcomed by using smaller waveguides (of the order of similar to1 mum). In this paper, we present the basic operating mechanism, design, and fabrication details of an optimum three terminal p-i-n diode based optical phase modulator based on Silicon-On-Insulator (SOD. The device was optimised via electrical and optical modeling and is predicted to operated at similar to1.3GHz with a power reduction of 900%, as compared to previously published designs.