Polarization Control in Integrated Silicon Waveguides Using Semiconductor Nanowires

Kaplan, Ali Emre;Vitali, Valerio;Demontis, Valeria;Rossella, Francesco;Fontana, Andrea;Cornia, Samuele;Petropoulos, Periklis;Bellani, Vittorio;Lacava, Cosimo;Cristiani, Ilaria

2022-01-01

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Abstract

In this work, we show the design of a silicon photonic-based polarization converting device based on the integration of semiconduction InP nanowires on the silicon photonic platform. We present a comprehensive numerical analysis showing that full polarization conversion (from quasi-TE modes to quasi-TM modes, and vice versa) can be achieved in devices exhibiting small footprints (total device lengths below 20 mu m) with minimal power loss (<2 dB). The approach described in this work can pave the way to the realization of complex and re-configurable photonic processors based on the manipulation of the state of polarization of guided light beams.