Anthony Zhou

First Name: 
Anthony
Last Name: 
Zhou
Mentor: 
Dr. Juejun Hu
Abstract: 
Photonic devices, such as fibers, waveguides, and chips, form the underlying infrastructure for everything from high-speed internet to liquid crystal display (LCD) TVs. Given its increased speed and bandwidth, light energy is an attractive way to supplement electrical circuitry as a way of transmitting information. While photonic devices are internally quite efficient, a significant amount of energy is lost through coupling. Optical coupling, the act of channeling light between two different mediums, is currently achieved through two existing approaches — butt coupling and grating coupling — but both are limited. Therefore, the goal of this project is to develop a new type of optical coupler: an Optical Free-Form Coupler for High-density Integrated Photonics (OFFCHIP), which — even with a naïve parabolic reflector — demonstrates increased spectral bandwidth (over half an octave), spatial density, ease of manufacturing, and coupling efficiency (0.2-0.3 dB loss per coupler) compared to existing solutions. We show that image processing techniques can be used to account for the wave properties of light and maximize coupling efficiency through improved surface design. This technology promises to solve the widespread interconnection challenges afflicting integrated photonics.
Poster: 
Optimizing Surface Topology in Optical Free-Form Couplers for High-density Integrated Photonics
Year: 
2021