Demonstration of the DC-Kerr effect in silicon-rich nitride

We demonstrate the DC-Kerr effect in plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) silicon-rich nitride (SRN) and use it to demonstrate a third order nonlinear susceptibility, chi((3)), as high as (6 +/- 0.58) x 10(-19) m(2) /V-2. We employ spectral shift versus applied voltage measurements in a racetrack resonator as a tool to characterize the nonlinear susceptibilities of these films. In doing so, we demonstrate a chi((3)) larger than that of silicon and argue that PECVD SRN can provide a versatile platform for employing optical phase shifters while maintaining a low thermal budget using a deposition technique readily available in CMOS process flows. (C) 2021 Optical Society of America

Automated summary

The DC-Kerr effect in PECVD silicon-rich nitride (SRN) was demonstrated, showing a third order nonlinear susceptibility as high as (6 +/- 0.58) x 10(-19) m(2) /V-2. Spectral shift versus applied voltage measurements in a racetrack resonator were used to characterize the nonlinear susceptibilities of these films, with PECVD SRN potentially providing a versatile platform for optical phase shifters.