Journal
MICROMACHINES
Volume 10, Issue 1, Pages -Publisher
MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/mi10010051
Keywords
silicon photonics; waveguide; switch; integrated optics; MEMS; integration; actuator
Categories
Funding
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [61804138]
- Hubei Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China [2017CFB193]
- Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan) [CUG170608]
- Shenzhen Technology and Innovation Council [JCYJ20170818094001391, KQJSCX20170727163424873]
- Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute Faculty Start-up Fund
Ask authors/readers for more resources
In the last decade, silicon photonic switches are increasingly believed to be potential candidates for replacing the electrical switches in the applications of telecommunication networks, data center and high-throughput computing, due to their low power consumption (Picojoules per bit), large bandwidth (Terabits per second) and high-level integration (Square millimeters per port). This review paper focuses on the state of the art and our perspectives on silicon photonic switching technologies. It starts with a review of three types of fundamental switch engines, i.e., Mach-Zehnder interferometer, micro-ring resonator and micro-electro-mechanical-system actuated waveguide coupler. The working mechanisms are introduced and the key specifications such as insertion loss, crosstalk, switching time, footprint and power consumption are evaluated. Then it is followed by the discussion on the prototype of large-scale silicon photonic fabrics, which are based on the configuration of above-mentioned switch engines. In addition, the key technologies, such as topological architecture, passive components and optoelectronic packaging, to improve the overall performance are summarized. Finally, the critical challenges that might hamper the silicon photonic switching technologies transferring from proof-of-concept in lab to commercialization are also discussed.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available