Atomic layer deposition-enabled few-mode erbium-doped waveguide amplifiers with low differential mode gains.

We present a novel and efficient methodology for obtaining high-gain on-chip few-mode erbium-doped waveguide amplifiers, which exhibit a moderate differential mode gain (DMG). The efficiency of the device is validated by an optimized algorithm that theoretically models the gain performance of the six lowest-order optical modes, namely TE, TM, TE, TM, TE, and TM. Notably, these six signal modes achieve internal net gains exceeding 22 dB within a 5-cm-long waveguide, while maintaining the DMG at a mere 2 dB.

Optical, mechanical and thermal characterizations of suspended chalcogenide glass microdisk membrane.

As a promising infrared optical material, the physical characteristics of patterned chalcogenide glass (ChG) membranes are of great importance for the improvement of device performances. In this work, based on the suspended membrane configuration, we have demonstrated the mechanical and thermal characterizations of the GeAsSe ChG optical microdisk resonator. By approximation of ChG cantilever configuration, the out-of-plane minimum mechanical strength of the microdisk membrane was measured to be 150 MPa by exploiting atom force microscope (AFM).