Design and simulation of waveguide-integrated Ge/SiGe quantum-confined Stark effect optical modulator based on adiabatic coupling with SiGe waveguide

We report on the design and simulation of a waveguide-integrated Ge/SiGe quantum-confined Stark effect (QCSE) optical modulator based on the use of a Ge-rich SiGe relaxed buffer on a graded buffer as an optical waveguide. Despite the promising potential of this waveguide platform, efficient and wideband optical integration with a Ge-based active device has not been properly addressed so far. In this paper, via 3D finite-difference time domain simulation, we demonstrate that a simple 2D taper is sufficient to enable adiabatic optical coupling from the fundamental mode of the input SiGe waveguide to the fundamental mode of the Ge/SiGe multiple quantum well (MQW) modulator without the excitation of higher-order modes in Ge/SiGe MQWs. The 2D taper shows good fabrication tolerance considering critical variations in its dimensions. Significantly, wideband optical modulation performance in terms of extinction ratio and insertion loss is presented over the whole low-loss spectral range of the Ge/SiGe MQWs at different electrical bias values, device lengths, and numbers of quantum wells in order to comprehensively report its potential for Si-based optical modulators.

Automated summary

This study reports on the design and simulation of a waveguide-integrated Ge/SiGe quantum-confined Stark effect optical modulator, demonstrating through 3D finite-difference time domain simulation that a simple 2D taper enables efficient optical coupling between input SiGe waveguide and Ge/SiGe multiple quantum well modulator. The study also presents wideband optical modulation performance over the low-loss spectral range of Ge/SiGe MQWs, showing the potential for Si-based optical modulators.