CN102213844A

CN102213844A - Tunable optical filter with metal heating electrode embedded in cavity

Info

Publication number: CN102213844A
Application number: CN2011101657784A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 黄辉; 渠波
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2011-06-13
Filing date: 2011-06-13
Publication date: 2011-10-12

Abstract

The invention provides a tunable optical filter with a metal heating electrode embedded in a cavity. The tunable optical filter is characterized in that: the metal heating electrode is embedded in a resonant cavity and is heated and tuned. Compared with a heating structure outside the cavity, the heating structure inside the cavity can be used for reducing the heat dispersed to air or a substrate and has the characteristics of low tuning power consumption and high tuning speed; and compared with a semiconductor heating electrode, the metal heating electrode has the characteristics of stable resistance value and high heating efficiency. The tunable optical fiber disclosed by the invention has the characteristics of high stability, low power consumption and high tuning speed.

Description

Bury the tunable optical filter of METAL HEATING PROCESS electrode in a kind of chamber

Technical field

The present invention relates to a kind of tunable optical filter, can be used for fields such as optical communication and light sensing.

Background technology

Tunable optical filter has important use [IEE Proceedings:Circuits, Devices and Systems, 150 (2003) 501-505 in optical fiber communication and light sensory field; Electric PowerSystems Research, 80 (2010) 77-83], wherein Fabry-Perot (Fabry-Perot) wave filter (hereinafter to be referred as " FP wave filter ") have low cost, can be integrated, narrow linewidth, high-precision characteristics.The tuning manner of FP wave filter mainly comprises tuning [the Japanese J.Applied Physics of micromechanics, Part 1,45 (2006) 7732-7736], electro-optical tuning [J.Lightw.Technol., 23 (2005) 2169-2174] and thermo-optical tunability [J.Microelectromechanical Systems, 16 (2007) 500-510] etc.Wherein small mechanical filter is owing to be not structure of whole solid state, less stable; The tuning speed of electro-optical tuning fast (nanosecond order), low in energy consumption, but tuning range is then very narrow (generally＜2nm); That thermo-optical tunability then has is all solid state, good stability and the big advantage of tuning range, but tuning speed slow (millisecond magnitude).

The thermo-optical tunability mechanism of FP wave filter is: change the temperature of material in the resonator cavity and then change its refractive index by heating, realize the effective cavity length of resonator cavity and the change of resonance wavelength.At present, the FP wave filter of thermo-optical tunability, its heating electrode are usually located at resonator cavity upper surface [Optics Communications, 244 (2005) 167-170; J.Microelectromechanical Systems, 16 (2007) 500-510] or place resonator cavity bottom [J.Lightw.Technol., 22 (2004) 126-135].This chamber external heating mode, the heat that is produced is easy to diffuse in air or the substrate, so the energy utilization efficiency of thermal tuning is not high; And heat needs the extra time by being transmitted to outside the chamber in the chamber, also reduced tuning speed.But, often need device energy high speed and low-power consumption work for optical communication and optical sensor system.

It is tuning that we once utilized the mode of heating in the chamber to carry out, and promptly heating electrode is positioned at intra resonant cavity [Applied Optics, 45 (2006) 8448-8453].Because this device architecture is that disposable epitaxial growth forms, zone of heating adopts semiconductor material in the chamber, and the resistivity of semiconductor material is very sensitive to temperature and doping content, be difficult to obtain stable, accurate resistance value, so this scheme can't provide the product of stable performance, unanimity.

In sum, design performance is stable, efficiently and fast heat tuning manner, makes thermo-optical tunability FP wave filter have more stable performance, lower power consumption and tuning speed faster, is that wound of the present invention is ground motivation.

Summary of the invention

The present invention proposes a kind of " burying the tunable optical filter of METAL HEATING PROCESS electrode in the chamber ", the characteristics of this device are that the METAL HEATING PROCESS electrode buried is added thermal tuning (as Fig. 1) in resonator cavity, because the METAL HEATING PROCESS electrode has the advantages that resistance value is stable, heating efficiency is high, heating arrangement can improve energy utilization efficiency in this chamber simultaneously, and therefore hot optic tunable filter of the present invention has the advantages that stability is high, low in energy consumption and tuned speed is fast.The present invention can realize in the following manner:

As shown in Figure 2, at first somatomedin film Bragg mirror (DBR) is as end mirror in substrate, and then growth thickness is the chamber internal layer of L1; Then, growth thickness is the metallic film of d, and thereby this metal level can form ring-type heating electrode structure (as Fig. 2) by photoetching, etching technics obtain needed resistance value; At last, growth thickness is chamber internal layer and the top DBR (as Fig. 1) of L2.

Device of the present invention can also be realized (as Fig. 3) according to another kind of mode, and at first growth DBR and thickness are the chamber internal layer of L1 in two substrates; Then, growing metal film in substrate therein, thereby this metal level can form ring-type heating electrode structure (as Fig. 2) by photoetching, etching technics obtain needed resistance value; At last, two substrates are bonded together, thereby constitute entire device (as Fig. 1).

Described METAL HEATING PROCESS electrode applies voltage or electric current generation heat by the outside, thereby changes the refractive index of material in the chamber, the resonance wavelength that realizes regulating resonator cavity.

Described metal electrode is by adding the Temperature Distribution of thermosetting, and the thickness proportion of base material, chamber inner layer material, DBR material and L1/K2 that can be by selecting different coefficient of heat conductivity is controlled.

Described metallic film material is preferably from Pt, Cr, Au, Ti, Ni, Al, W and Pt-Cr-Au-Ti material.

Described DBR material is preferably from Si/SiO ₂, Si/SiN _XWith the GaAs/AlGaAs material.

Described substrate is preferably from Si, glass and GaAs material.

Described METAL HEATING PROCESS electrode be shaped as circle, ellipse or polygonal loop configuration.

Description of drawings

Accompanying drawing, it is incorporated into and becomes the part of this instructions, the embodiments of the invention of having demonstrated, and explain principle of the present invention with aforesaid summary and following detailed.

Fig. 1 is the structural representation of tunable optical filter.

Fig. 2 is the structure of METAL HEATING PROCESS electrode.

Fig. 3 be tunable optical filter the preparation scheme two.

Embodiment

For making the content of technical scheme of the present invention more clear, be described in detail the specific embodiment of the present invention below in conjunction with technical scheme and accompanying drawing.

Material growing technology among the present invention comprises: common technologies such as evaporation, sputter, plating, metal-organic chemical vapor deposition equipment (MOCVD), molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD), in specific embodiment, do not enumerate one by one.

Example 1

At first, growth GaAs/AlGaAs DBR and GaAs thin layer on two GaAs substrates;

Secondly, sputter growth one deck Cr-Au metallic film on GaAs epitaxial wafer therein, and by photoetching, etching technics, endless metal heating electrode (shown in Figure 2);

At last, two epitaxial wafers are bonded together (as Fig. 3) face-to-face, form tunable optic filter (as Fig. 1).

Example 2

At first, growth bottom Si/SiO on the Si substrate ₂DBR and Si thin layer;

Secondly, follow the Pt-Ti-Pt-Au metallic film, and by photoetching, etching technics, endless metal heating electrode (shown in Figure 2);

At last, growth Si thin layer and top Si/SiN _XDBR forms tunable optic filter (as Fig. 1).

Example 3

At first, growth bottom Si/SiN on glass substrate _XDBR and Si thin layer;

Secondly, follow the Cr-Ni metallic film, and by photoetching, etching technics, endless metal heating electrode (shown in Figure 2);

The above is know-why and instantiation that the present invention uses, the equivalent transformation of doing according to conception of the present invention, as long as when the scheme that it used does not exceed spiritual that instructions and accompanying drawing contain yet, and all should be within the scope of the invention, explanation hereby.

Claims

1. bury the tunable optical filter of METAL HEATING PROCESS electrode in the chamber, it is characterized in that: the METAL HEATING PROCESS electrode buried is added thermal tuning in Fabry-Perot (FP) resonator cavity.

2. the described METAL HEATING PROCESS electrode of claim 1 applies voltage or electric current generation heat by the outside, thereby changes the refractive index of material in the resonator cavity, realizes that the resonance wavelength of resonator cavity changes.

3. claim 1 and 2 described METAL HEATING PROCESS electrodes are circular, oval or polygonal loop configuration.

4. the described loop configuration of claim 3 forms through photoetching, etching by the metallic film to growth.

5. the described metallic film material of claim 4, preferred Pt, Cr, Au, Ti, Ni, Al, W and Pt-Cr-Au-Ti material.

6. the described FP resonator cavity of claim 1 is made of two or more deielectric-coating Bragg mirrors.

7. the described reflecting mirror material of claim 6 is preferably from Si/SiO ₂, Si/SiN _XAnd GaAs/AlGaAs.