EU scientists to achieve new breakthrough quantum dot lasers

The EU Project on Heterogeneous Integration of Group III-V Semiconductor Quantum Dot and Quantum Dot Materials (ENUU) project reported new progress on silicon photonic integrated circuits (PICs). Since 2013, the SEQUOIA project has been developing hybrid III-V lasers that have good thermal stability, high modulation bandwidth, and the potential to produce planar WDM honeycombs. By using silicon substrate nanostructured heterojunction integrated materials, optical filters can be directly integrated with heterogeneous quantum dots / quantum clusters / silicon lasers to make chirped lasers. The laser has an enhanced modulation bandwidth and extinction ratio compared to direct modulation lasers. As an example of this technology, the goal is to develop a transmitter with a total capacity of 400Gbps (16x25Gbps). In the first phase of the project, quantum dot / quantum cluster material quality has improved significantly, and Kassel University recently demonstrated quantum dots that directly modulate bit rates up to 34Gbps, creating a new record. At the same time, quantum dot wafers were successfully bonded to silicon wafers. Both PIC final demonstration products were also designed to directly modulate chirped lasers up to 25Gbps bit rate and comb-laser lasers integrated with cascaded ring resonator adjusters. Using 16 WDM channels, these PICs provide a total capacity of 400 Gbps, provide better performance at lower cost, and enhance device performance with new materials and new integrated processes. The project is led by a Group III-V laboratory that has excellent expertise in hybrid integration of InP based photonics and silicon-based III-V family. The other two German partners are innolume and Kassel universities based in Dortmund, both with record results in materials and III-V optoelectronics research. Other partners are French Electronics and Information Technology Laboratory; Danish Technical University Institute of Photonics; Radford University Futian Laboratory.

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