Stability Formulation for Integrated Opto-mechanic Phase Shifters

Stability of opto-mechanical phase shifters consisting of waveguides and non-signal carrying control beams is investigated thoroughly and a formula determining the physical limitations has been proposed. Suggested formulation is not only beneficial to determine physical strength of the system but also advantageous to guess the response of the output to the fabrication errors. In the iterative analysis of cantilever and double-clamped beam geometrical configurations, the stability condition is revealed under the strong inter-dependence of the system parameters such as input power, device length and waveguide separation. Numerical calculations involving effective index modifications and opto-mechanic movements show that well-known cantilever beams are unstable and inadequate to generate phi = 180 degrees phase difference, while double-clamped beam structures can be utilized to build functional devices. Ideal operation conditions are also presented in terms of both the device durability and the controllability of phase evolution.