A step forward in the development of Zorn-based photonic microelectromechanical systems

Today, the network infrastructure is based on optical fiber communication, and the question is how to create such more efficient systems so that it can fulfill the future demand of digital communication

[Translation by Dr. Moshe Nachmani]

In recent years, the global digitalization process has accelerated at an unprecedented rate. Streaming video content as well as video conferencing in home offices and remote study complexes have generated records in broadband consumption in private homes. New applications such as artificial intelligence and autonomous vehicles will further accelerate the demand volume of data communication in the near future. Today, the network infrastructure is based on optical fiber communication, and the question is how to create such systems that are more efficient so that they can fulfill the future demand of digital communication

In order to cope with the increasing data rates, optical fiber communication systems make use of many individual communication channels in dedicated wavelengths, a method known as "wavelength division multiplexing". The different channels are combined together with the help of a multiplexer before streaming through an optical fiber. In order to retrieve the data, the optical spectrum is demultiplexed on the receiver side. Normally, this operation is carried out with the help of 'photonic integrated circuits' (PICs). These circuits confine and direct light into micro-components that actuate the information in several channels of wavelengths, such as layered arrays of waveguides or integrated ring resonators. 

Now, in an article published in the scientific journal Optical Microsystems, researcher Hamed Sattari and his colleagues have demonstrated the operation of an energy-efficient component for demultiplexing operation by physically moving a toroidal ring resonator within a photonic integrated circuit. The mechanical displacement of the ring resonator allows the transfer of a channel of wavelengths into a waveguide, which in effect acts as a micromechanical add-drop filter (Add-drop filter, ADF). The electrostatic actuation mechanism is based on microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), a technology widely applied in consumer electronic devices, such as micromirrors in video projectors.

Compared to these known systems (MEMS), the innovative photonic system based on Zorn and demonstrated in the article is three orders of magnitude smaller. The cross-section of the waveguide in the ring resonator is less than 650 x 220 nm, and a displacement of less than 500 nm is sufficient to activate the filter. The compact key enables quick activation, compared to well-known MEMS products on the market, and the electrostatic activation mechanism ensures extremely low energy consumption, making the innovative filter very energy efficient.

"Our contribution demonstrates that photonic microelectromechanical systems based on Zorn have advanced an important step forward in terms of technological maturity," said the lead researcher. "Large-scale photonic integrated circuits consisting of thousands of components, such as add-drop filters, are now buildable, providing a missing platform capable of making data-centric fiber optic communication applications more optically efficient."      

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