Broadband and fabrication-tolerant on-chip scalable mode-division multiplexing based on mode-evolution counter-tapered couplers.
A broadband and fabrication-tolerant on-chip scalable mode-division multiplexing (MDM) scheme based on mode-evolution counter-tapered couplers is designed and experimentally demonstrated on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform. Due to the broadband advantage offered by mode evolution, the two-mode MDM link exhibits a very large, -1  dB bandwidth of >180  nm, which is considerably larger than most of the previously reported MDM links whether they are based on mode-interference or evolution. In addition, the performance metrics remain stable for large-device width deviations from the designed valued by -60  nm to 40 nm, and for temperature variations from -25°C to 75°C. This MDM scheme can be readily extended to higher-order mode multiplexing and a three-mode MDM link is measured with less than -10  dB crosstalk from 1.46 to 1.64 μm wavelength range.
Jing
J
Wang
Yi
Y
Xuan
Minghao
M
Qi
Haiyang
H
Huang
You
Y
Li
Ming
M
Li
Xin
X
Chen
Zhen
Z
Sheng
Aimin
A
Wu
Wei
W
Li
Xi
X
Wang
Shichang
S
Zou
Fuwan
F
Gan