2021/01/10 by Matthew Delaney, Delaney, Matthew, Ioannis Zeimpekis +13
Computer Science · Engineering · Materials Science · #Applied Physics (physics.app-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences #Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci) #Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall) #Neural Networks and Reservoir Computing #Optical Network Technologies #Optics (physics.optics) #Phase-change materials and chalcogenides #Photonic and Optical Devices
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2101.03623
openalex publication_date 2021/01/10 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Adaptable, reconfigurable and programmable are key functionalities for the next generation of silicon-based photonic processors, neural and quantum networks. Phase change technology offers proven non-volatile electronic programmability, however the materials used to date have shown prohibitively high optical losses which are incompatible with integrated photonic platforms. Here, we demonstrate the capability of the previously unexplored material Sb2Se3 for ultralow-loss programmable silicon photonics. The favorable combination of large refractive index contrast and ultralow losses seen in Sb2Se3 facilitates an unprecedented optical phase control exceeding 10π radians in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer. To demonstrate full control over the flow of light, we introduce nanophotonic digital patterning as a conceptually new approach at a footprint orders of magnitude smaller than state of the art interferometer meshes. Our approach enables a wealth of possibilities in high-density reconfiguration of optical functionalities on silicon chip.