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Intel's Hybrid Silicon Laser Chip
Techtree News Staff, Sep 19, 2006 1333 hrs ISTIntel Corp, along with the University of California, Santa Barbara, has developed the world's first electrically powered Hybrid Silicon Laser...
Intel Corp, in collaboration with the University of California, Santa Barbara, has developed the world's first electrically powered Hybrid Silicon Laser, using standard silicon manufacturing processes.
According to Intel, this development overcomes the last barrier to producing low-cost, high-bandwidth Silicon Photonics devices for use with future computers and data centers.
The researchers have combined the light-emitting properties of Indium Phosphide with the light-routing properties of Silicon into a single hybrid chip. The new chip is expected to drive wider use of Photonics in computers, while aiding cost reduction.
Speaking about the development, Mario Paniccia, director - photonics technology lab, Intel, said, "This could bring low-cost, terabit-level optical 'data pipes' inside future computers, and help make possible a new era of high-performance computing applications. While still far from becoming a commercial product, we believe dozens, maybe even hundreds of hybrid silicon lasers could be integrated with other silicon Photonic components onto a single silicon chip."
Adding to it, John Bowers, professor - electrical and computer engineering, UC Santa Barbara, said, "By combining UCSB's expertise with Indium Phosphide, and Intel's Silicon Photonics expertise, we have demonstrated a novel laser structure based on a bonding method that can be used at the wafer, partial-wafer, or die-level, and could be a solution for large-scale optical integration onto a silicon platform. This marks the beginning of highly integrated Silicon Photonic chips that can be mass produced at low cost."
Today, Silicon is widely used to mass produce affordable digital electronics. It can also be used to route, detect, modulate, and even amplify light, but not to effectively generate light. In contrast, Indium Phosphide based lasers are commonly used in telecommunications equipment. However, the need to individually assemble and align them has made them too expensive to build in high volumes and at the low costs that are required by the PC industry.
Hence, the Hybrid Silicon Laser incorporates a novel design, employing Indium Phosphide based material for light generation and amplification while using Silicon based material for containing and controlling the Laser. The chip is manufactured using a low-temperature, oxygen plasma, which is an electrically charged oxygen gas used to create a thin oxide layer (roughly 25 atoms thick) on the surfaces of both Silicon and Indium Phosphide.
When heated and pressed together, the Oxide layer functions as a "glass-glue," fusing the two materials into a single chip. When voltage is applied, light generated in the Indium Phosphide based material passes through the oxide "glass-glue" layer, and into the silicon based material, where it is contained and controlled, to create the Hybrid Silicon Laser.
The Hybrid Silicon Laser is seen as the first step towards Intel's long-term mission of "siliconizing" Photonics using standard Silicon manufacturing processes.
According to Intel, this development overcomes the last barrier to producing low-cost, high-bandwidth Silicon Photonics devices for use with future computers and data centers.
The researchers have combined the light-emitting properties of Indium Phosphide with the light-routing properties of Silicon into a single hybrid chip. The new chip is expected to drive wider use of Photonics in computers, while aiding cost reduction.
Speaking about the development, Mario Paniccia, director - photonics technology lab, Intel, said, "This could bring low-cost, terabit-level optical 'data pipes' inside future computers, and help make possible a new era of high-performance computing applications. While still far from becoming a commercial product, we believe dozens, maybe even hundreds of hybrid silicon lasers could be integrated with other silicon Photonic components onto a single silicon chip."
Adding to it, John Bowers, professor - electrical and computer engineering, UC Santa Barbara, said, "By combining UCSB's expertise with Indium Phosphide, and Intel's Silicon Photonics expertise, we have demonstrated a novel laser structure based on a bonding method that can be used at the wafer, partial-wafer, or die-level, and could be a solution for large-scale optical integration onto a silicon platform. This marks the beginning of highly integrated Silicon Photonic chips that can be mass produced at low cost."
Today, Silicon is widely used to mass produce affordable digital electronics. It can also be used to route, detect, modulate, and even amplify light, but not to effectively generate light. In contrast, Indium Phosphide based lasers are commonly used in telecommunications equipment. However, the need to individually assemble and align them has made them too expensive to build in high volumes and at the low costs that are required by the PC industry.
Hence, the Hybrid Silicon Laser incorporates a novel design, employing Indium Phosphide based material for light generation and amplification while using Silicon based material for containing and controlling the Laser. The chip is manufactured using a low-temperature, oxygen plasma, which is an electrically charged oxygen gas used to create a thin oxide layer (roughly 25 atoms thick) on the surfaces of both Silicon and Indium Phosphide.
When heated and pressed together, the Oxide layer functions as a "glass-glue," fusing the two materials into a single chip. When voltage is applied, light generated in the Indium Phosphide based material passes through the oxide "glass-glue" layer, and into the silicon based material, where it is contained and controlled, to create the Hybrid Silicon Laser.
The Hybrid Silicon Laser is seen as the first step towards Intel's long-term mission of "siliconizing" Photonics using standard Silicon manufacturing processes.
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