title: Analytical study of optical bistability in silicon ring resonators.
abstract: We analyze theoretically the nonlinear phenomenon of optical bistability inside a ring resonator formed with a silicon-waveguide nanowire and derive an exact parametric relation connecting the output intensity to the input intensity. Our input-output relation accounts for linear losses, the Kerr nonlinearity, two-photon absorption, free-carrier-induced absorption and dispersion, and thermo-optic effects within the resonator. Based on our study, we generalize the standard definition of effective length to allow for all possible losses within a silicon ring resonator. We also present a simplified version of the bistable phenomenon valid for resonators operating in a regime in which losses resulting from two-photon absorption are relatively small. Our analytical results provide clear insight into the physics behind optical bistability and may be useful for designing silicon-based optical memories.
authors.affiliation: Advanced Computing and Simulation Laboratory, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia. ivan.rukhlenko@eng.monash.edu.au
authors.forename: Ivan D
authors.initials: ID
authors.lastname: Rukhlenko
authors.forename: Malin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Premaratne
authors.forename: Govind P
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Agrawal