Abstract
A method for precise adjustment of the power splitting ratio for integrated optical splitters fabricated on lithium niobate substrates is proposed. The method is based on a local refractive index change caused by the photorefractive effect under external illumination of certain areas of waveguide power splitters. A fiber optic probe was used for precise positioning of an external illumination spot. Predictable tuning of the splitting ratio for two basic splitter configurations (directional couplers and y-branches) was demonstrated. Precise adjustment of the power splitting ratio in a relatively narrow range (2%) led to a significant growth in the Mach–Zehnder modulator extinction ratio (as high as 17 dB, from 30 to 47 dB). The proposed method is simple and can prove to be a very promising additive technique for improvement of lithium niobate integrated optical schemes.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
M.P. Petrov, S.I. Stepanov, A.V. Khomenko, Photorefractive crystals in coherent optical systems (Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, 1991)
K. Buse, E. Krätzig, K.H. Ringhofer, Appl. Phys. B 72, 633 (2001)
K. Buse, J. Imbrock, E. Krätzig, K. Peithmann, Photorefractive Effects in LiNbO3 and LiTaO3, in Photorefractive materials and their applications 83, ed. by P. Günter, J.P. Huignard (Springer, New York, 2007)
J.E. Toney, Lithium niobate photonics (Artech House, Norwood, 2015)
M. Bazzan, C. Sada, Appl. Phys. Rev. 2, 040603 (2015)
W. Sohler, H. Hu, R. Ricken, V. Quiring, C. Vannahme, H. Herrmann, D. Büchter, S. Reza, W. Grundkötter, S. Orlov, H. Suche, R. Nouroozi, Y. Min, Opt. Photonics News 19, 24 (2008)
A. Chen, E.J. Murphy, Broadband optical modulators: science, technology, and applications (CRC Press, Boca Raton, 2012)
E.L. Wooten, K.M. Kissa, A. Yi-Yan, E.J. Murphy, D.A. Lafaw, P.F. Hallemeier, D. Maack, D.V. Attanasio, D.J. Fritz, G.J. McBrien, D.E. Bossi, IEEE J. Sel. Topics Quant Elect. 6, 69 (2000)
C. Wang, M. Zhang, X. Chen, M. Bertrand, A. Shams-Ansari, S. Chandrasekhar, P. Winzer, M. Lončar, Nature 562, 101 (2018)
C.S. Tsai, Guided-wave acousto-optics: interactions, devices, and applications (Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, 1990)
H. Okayama, Lithium niobate electro-optic switching, in Optical switching, 39, ed. by T.S. El-Bawab (Springer, Boston, 2006)
M.P. Petrov, A.V. Chamrai, A.S. Kozlov, I.V. Il’Ichev, Tech. Phys. Lett. 30, 120 (2004)
K.R. Parameswaran, R.K. Route, J.R. Kurz, R.V. Roussev, M.M. Fejer, M. Fujimura, Opt. Lett. 27, 179 (2002)
S. Thaniyavarn, Opt. Lett. 11, 39 (1986)
D. Noriega Urquídez, S. Stepanov, H. Soto Ortiz, N. Toguzov, I. Ilichev, A. Shamray, Appl. Phys. B 106, 51 (2012)
E. Van Wood, P.J. Cressman, R.L. Holman, C.M. Verber, Photorefractive waveguides, in Photorefractive materials and their applications II, Survey of Applications 45, ed. by P. Günter, J.P. Huignard (Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, 1989)
K.D. Kip, M. Wesner, Photorefractive waveguides, in Photorefractive materials and their applications 1, Basic effects, 289, ed. by P. Günter, J.P. Huignard (Springer, New York, 2006)
D. Kip, Appl. Phys. B 67, 131 (1998)
C.T. Mueller, E. Garmire, Appl. Opt. 23, 4348 (1984)
G.T. Harvey, J. Light. Tech. 6, 872 (1988)
S.M. Kostritskii, Appl. Phys. B 95, 421 (2009)
O. Alibart, V. D’Auria, M. De Micheli, F. Doutre, F. Kaiser, L. Labonté, T. Lunghi, É. Picholle, S. Tanzilliet, J. Opt. 18, 104001 (2016)
P. Lu, N. Lalam, M. Badar, B. Liu, B.T. Chorpening, M.P. Buric, P.R. Ohodnicki, Appl. Phys. Rev. 6, 041302 (2019)
H. Sasaki, I. Anderson, IEEE J. Quantum Electron. 14, 883 (1978)
H. Kogelnik, R.V. Schmidt, IEEE. J. Quantum Electron. QE-2, 396 (1976)
S.K. Korotky, J.J. Veselka, J. Light. Technol. 14, 2687 (1996)
L.L. Wang, T. Kowalcyzk, J. Light. Technol. 28, 1703 (2010)
F. Chen, J.R.V. Aldana, Laser Photonics Rev. 8, 251 (2014)
A.H. Nejadmalayeri, P.R. Herman, Opt. Lett. 31, 2987 (2006)
F.S. Chen, J. Appl. Phys. 40, 3389 (1969)
I.V. Il’ichev, N.V. Toguzov, A.V. Shamray, Tech. Phys. Lett. 35, 831 (2009)
P.M. Karavaev, I.V. Ilichev, P.M. Agruzov, A.V. Tronev, A.V. Shamray, Tech. Phys. Lett. 42, 513 (2016)
J. Van Roey, J. van der Donk, P.E. Lagasse, J. Opt. Soc. Am. 71, 803 (1981)
F. Heismann, S.K. Korotky, J.J. Veselka, Lithium niobate integrated-optics: selected contemporary devices and system applications, in Optical fiber telecommunications IIIB, V. 3B, 1st edition 515, ed. by I.P. Kaminow, T.L. Koch (Academic Press, San Diego, 2012)
E.A.J. Marcatili, Bell Syst. Tech. J. 48, 2071 (1969)
M. Izutsu, Y. Nakai, T. Sueta, Opt. Lett. 7, 136 (1982)
A.I. Grachev, A.V. Chamrai, M.P. Petrov, OSA TOPS 62, 203 (2011)
Acknowledgements
The work was supported by the Russian Science Foundation, Project 19-19-00511.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflicts of interest
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Parfenov, M., Tronev, A., Ilichev, I. et al. Precise correction of integrated optical power splitters based on lithium niobate substrates by photorefractive effect local excitation. Appl. Phys. B 126, 93 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00340-020-07440-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00340-020-07440-5