INTEGRATED OPTICAL COMPONENTS FOR WIDEBAND OPTICAL COMMUNICATION & OPTICAL COMPUTING

AS THE GEOMETRIES OF VERY LARGE-SCALE INTEGRATED CHIPS GROW SMALLER AND DENSER, AND AS COMPUTATIONS BECOME FASTER AND MORE COMPLEX, THE CAPACITY OF ELECTRIC CIRCUITS IS BEING OUTSTRIPPED. THE CONNECTIONS SIMPLY CANNOT HANDLE ELECTRIC SIGNALS FAST ENOUGH AND RELIABLY ENOUGH. IN ADVANCED SYSTEMS, THE POWER DRAIN AND THE SHEER NUMBERS OF THE WIRES LINKING THE CHIPS, AND LINKING THE CIRCUIT BOARDS, IS PROHIBITIVE. CONNECTING CIRCUITS BY LIGHT INSTEAD OF BY ELECTRIC SIGNALS PROMISES RELIEF. UNDER PHASE II OF THIS SBIR PROGRAM, WE PLAN TO EXPERIMENTALLY DEMONSTRATE INTEGRATEDD OPTICAL WAVEGUIDES THAT ALLOW OPTICAL CHANNELS TO BE INCORPORATED WITHIN OPTE-ELECTRONIC DEVICES AND PACKAGES. IN ADDITION WE WILL EXPLORE THEORETICALLY THE FULL POTENTIAL OF INTRABOARD OPTICAL INTERCONNECTIONS WHEN OPTO-ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS ARE INTEGRATED MONLITHICALLYWITH HIGH SPEED ELECTRONICS. THIS ANALYSIS WILL PROVIDE DIRECT CLUES TOWARD ELIMINATION OF THE EXCESS CAPACITANCE AND INDUCTANCE OF BONDING PADS AND WIRES WHICH SHOULD RESULTIN MONOLITHIC COMBINATIONS THAT OPERATE FASTER, USE LESS POWER, AND PRODUCE LESS NOISE THAT THE PRESENT HYBRIDS.