Graphene-based hybrid plasmonic optical electro-absorption modulator on InP platform

• Published in: Optical and quantum electronics Vol. 56; no. 3
• Main Authors: Nezamdoost, Hamid, Nikoufard, Mahmoud, Saghaei, Hamed
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.03.2024; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Absorption; Bandwidths; Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Chemical potential; Computer Communication Networks; Data transfer (computers); Electrical Engineering; Electroabsorption modulators; Graphene; Insertion loss; Lasers; Light modulation; Optical communication; Optical Devices; Optical properties; Optics; Photonics; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Plasmonics; Quantum computing; Silicon dioxide; Thickness; Waveguides; Modulator; InP platform; Graphene; Hybrid plasmonic; Electro-absorption
• ISSN: 0306-8919; 1572-817X
• DOI: 10.1007/s11082-023-06136-2

This paper presents a novel design of an optical electro-absorption modulator based on a hybrid plasmonic structure with a graphene layer on the generic InP platform. Graphene-based optical modulators have the potential to revolutionize the field of optical communications. They enable high-speed data transfer and facilitate advancements in quantum computing. Developing a highly compact modulator on the InP platform represents a significant objective for photonics researchers aiming to achieve large-scale photonic integration technology. In the proposed design, a metal layer on top of a ridge waveguide creates a hybrid plasmonic structure. At the same time, light modulation is accomplished by applying a bias voltage to the graphene layer. By manipulating the optical absorption properties through changes in the Fermi level of the graphene layer, calculations demonstrate a 3 dB bandwidth exceeding 70 GHz at λ = 1.55 μm for a 1 µm length. Furthermore, the impact of metal and SiO 2 dielectric layer thicknesses and chemical potential on the real part of the effective index, optical absorption, 3 dB bandwidth, extinction ratio, and insertion loss are quantitatively determined.