Toward High-order Optical Plasmonic Switches

Optical switches are now being increasingly used in high-bit rate optical network configuration. Optical interconnects mainly use 1x2 or 2x2 silicon photonic switches as key devices in network configuration. Silicon-based photonics devices face a challenge in their sizes which are limited by diffraction that affects the dimensions which light can be confined. Plasmonics are considered to be a solution for this challenge because of its ability for transmission of optical signals along metal-dielectric interface within devices with dimensions below the wavelength of the light. This work presents the design and performance investigation of plasmonic switches for optical networks. Two types of CMOS-compatible plasmonic switches at 1550 nm operating wavelength are designed and investigated. The mathematical models and the theoretical analysis are supported by simulation results obtained using COMSOL Multiphysics ver. 5.2a. First, the analysis and investigation of the designed 2x2 MZS employing an EO polymer (JRD1) material infiltrated silicon-plasmonic hybrid phase shifter is performed. Then the work is extended to the design and investigation of 4x4 plasmonic optical switch.