McGill Photonic Systems Group

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McGill Photonic Systems Group
Andrew Kirk Micro and nano-optics Optical
interconnects Applications of MEMS
Lawrence Chen Optical amplifiers Fiber
lasers Transmission and coding issues
David Plant Optoelectronics VLSI photonics High
speed packaging Optical switches
30 graduate students, research engineers and
post-docs
Dominik Pudo dpudo_at_photonics.ece.mcg
ill.ca
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Photonics

• The PHOTON is to PHOTONics as the ELECTRON is to
  ELECTRONics.
• Three major developments in the recent past are
  responsible for the rejuvenation of this field
• Invention of the diode laser (1961)
• Fabrication of low loss fiber (1970)
• Maturing of semiconductor optical devices (1970s
  to present)
• Modern definition of photonics as applied to
  communications generation, modulation,
  transmission, and detection of light.

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Why light for communications ?

• Optical communication

Electrical transmission lines
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Limitations of electrical interconnects the
off-chip challenge

• As data rates increase, electrical interconnects
  are limited by
• Power
• Distortion
• Cross-talk
• Pin-out capacity
• Fundamental Aspect ratio limit

D.A.B.Miller and H.M.Ozaktas, J.Parallel
Distrib. Comput., 41, pp 42-52, 1997
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Optical Communications
Recent record 10 Tbps over 100km 3 Tbps
over 7300km
Length
100km
10km
1mm
1cm
10cm
1m
10m
100m
1km
Medium distance Parallel optical interconnect
Free-space optics
Long distance Optical fiber
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Research Overview-1

• developing ultrafast photonic and fiber optic
  technologies for broadband telecommunications,
  optical sensing, and biomedicine.  Specific areas
  include
• Ultrafast Photonic Signal Processing
• Fiber Amplifiers and Lasers
• Photonic Networks
• Microwave Photonics

Generation of a 325 GHz optical pulse burst
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Research Overview-2

• Parallel Optical Interconnects
• Free-space optical interconnects
• Parallel fiber interconnects
• Components for future optical fiber networks
• Multiplexers
• Switches

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Free-Space Optical Backplane
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Clustered system 512 channel parallel optical
board to board link
86 mm
Relay system
Prism
Prism
Glass spacer
Minilens
Microlens array
IC
Detector cluster

• 86 mm throw
• 3x6 mm active area
• 256 channels (bidirectional)
• 28 channels/mm2
• ? Clustered optical design

VCSEL cluster
M. Châteauneuf et al, Optics in Computing 2001,
pp.64-66.
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Completed 512 channel bidirectional system
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Research Overview-3

• Research in micro-optics and MEMS (
  Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems
• Free-space micro-optics for optical interconnects
• Micro-optics for telecomm systems
• Micro-opto-electro-mechanical systems (MOEMS)
• Sub-wavelength structured surfaces and devices

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MEMS mirror
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Clean room and packaging laboratories

• 1000 sq ft., class 10,000 clean room including a
  fume hood
• High and low power laser systems
• Test and measurement equipment supporting 12.5
  Gbps digital (BERT, scopes, etc.) and 22 GHz
  analog (lightwave component analyzer, signal
  generators, etc.)
• Free space and fiber based optics and
  optomechanics
• Wirebonding and packaging

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Fiber optics lab and design software

• New fiber optics laboratory
• C L band EDFAs, broadband, DFB, and tunable
  sources
• 10 40 GHz mode-locked fiber laser
• Optical spectrum analyzer
• Communication signal analyzer
• Polarization diagnostics
• Fusion splicer
• 10 and 40 Gbps modulators 10 Gbps receivers

• Software
• Circuit design
• Optical/fiber
• Mechanical

gt 3 000 000 of equipment
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Fiber optics lab
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Courses?

• Undergraduate
• 423B propagation, sources, free-space, detectors
  
• 430A waveguides, photonic devices, network
• 492A source, link, simulation, network devices

• Graduate
• 527B free-space, systems, simulations
• 571A laser sources and detectors (O/E E/O)
• 596A waveguides, propagation

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Thank you!