Ultra-low-power second-order nonlinear optics on a chip

Abstract

Second-order nonlinear optical processes convert light from one wavelength to another and generate quantum entanglement. Creating chip-scale devices to efficiently control these interactions greatly increases the reach of photonics. Existing silicon-based photonic circuits utilize the third-order optical nonlinearity, but an analogous integrated platform for second-order nonlinear optics remains an outstanding challenge. Here we demonstrate efficient frequency doubling and parametric oscillation with a threshold of tens of micro-watts in an integrated thin-film lithium niobate photonic circuit. We achieve degenerate and non-degenerate operation of the parametric oscillator at room temperature and tune its emission over one terahertz by varying the pump frequency by hundreds of megahertz. Finally, we observe cascaded second-order processes that result in parametric oscillation. These resonant second-order nonlinear circuits will form a crucial part of the emerging nonlinear and quantum photonics platforms.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Aug 04, 2022
Source ID
10.1038/s41467-022-31134-5

Entities

People

  • Amir H. Safavi-Naeini
  • Carsten Langrock
  • Christopher J. Sarabalis
  • Hubert S. Stokowski
  • Jason F. Herrmann
  • Jatadhari Mishra
  • Marc Jankowski
  • Martin M. Fejer
  • Timothy P. McKenna
  • Vahid Ansari

Organizations

  • NTT, Inc.
  • National Science Foundation
  • United States Department of Defense

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Integrated Circuit Design and Technology.
  • Materials Science and Engineering.
  • Quantum Dot Semiconductor Device Photonics and Graphene Optoelectronic Materials and THz Physics.

Technology Areas

  • Quantum Computing