Integrated broadband dual-polarization Ge-rich SiGe mid-infrared Fourier-transform spectrometer

Miniaturized on-chip spectrometers covering a wide band of the mid-infrared spectrum have an immense potential for multi-target detection in high-impact applications, such as chemical sensing or environmental monitoring. Specifically, multi-aperture spatial heterodyne Fourier-transform spectrometers (SHFTS) provide high throughput and improved tolerance against fabrication errors, compared to conventional counterparts. Still, state-of-the-art implementations have only shown single-polarization operation in narrow bandwidths within the near and short infrared. Here, we demonstrate the first, to the best of our knowledge, dual-polarization ultra-wideband SHFTS working beyond 5 mu m wavelength. We exploit the unique flexibility in material engineering of the graded-index germanium-rich silicon-germanium (Ge-rich SiGe) photonic platform to implement a SHFTS that can be operated in an unprecedented range of 800 cm(-1), showing experimental resolution better than 15 cm(-1) for both orthogonal polarizations and free spectral range of 132 cm(-1), in the wavelength range between 5 and 8.5 mu m. (C) 2018 Optical Society of America