Modeling and Design Tools for Heterogeneous Photonic Integrated Circuits

65129 The design of photonics integrated circuits, to be used in the next generation of sensors for national security applications, requires new and powerful modeling techniques that are fast and not overly taxing on computer memory. This project will develop universal modeling tools for integrated photonics design using multi-scale physics simulation techniques. New photonics software packages will be built which can model semiconductor laser devices and nonlinear optics processes in active and passive waveguides, including photonic bandgap crystals. Phase I demonstrated the feasibility of using finite element and multi-resolution techniques for building a photonics modeling package. Non-linear propagation and multiscale phenomena were addressed. In Phase II, eight specific photonic devices will be modeled using finite element and multi-resolution techniques. Code validation will be obtained by comparisons with detailed experimental measurements and iteration. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: Universal design software for the photonics and telecommunications markets should revolutionize the way photonic devices are designed. Such software should minimize the design cycle time, now bogged down by trial and error techniques and by the lack of firm simulation guidance.