All Si-based optical interconnect for interchip signal transmission

Barrier to the commercial implementation of optical interconnects between integrated circuits (ICs) center around the fabrication of optical elements on wafers through conventional Si processes. Most other approaches for optical interconnects use direct bandgap emitters that require drastic changes in conventional fabrication processes. In this work, we demonstrate the ability to transmit electrical signals using Si-based components, i.e., the light was generated by biasing a p-n junction at avalanche breakdown voltage, light was coupled through a fiber cable made Of SiO2, and detected by an Si-based avalanche photodiode. Results presented demonstrate the switching behavior of light emitter, transmission of signal across the fiber, and measurement of signal limited by the bandwidth of the receiver amplifier.