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Cited by 641Photonic and Optical DevicesPhotorefractive and Nonlinear OpticsPhotonic Crystals and Applications

Silicon nitride in silicon photonics

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Blumenthal, Daniel J., Heideman, Rene, Geuzebroek, Douwe, Leinse, Arne, Roeloffzen, Chris·2018·Proceedings of the IEEE
DOI 10.1109/jproc.2018.2861576
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Abstract

The silicon nitride (Si3N4) planar waveguide platform has enabled a broad class of low-loss planar-integrated devices and chip-scale solutions that benefit from transparency over a wide wavelength range (400-2350 nm) and fabrication using wafer-scale processes. As a complimentary platform to silicon-on-insulator (SOI) and III-V photonics, Si3N4waveguide technology opens up a new generation of system-on-chip applications not achievable with the other platforms alone. The availability of low-loss waveguides (3N4has expanded the practical application of optical signal processing functions that can reduce energy consumption, size and cost over today's digital electronic solutions. Researchers have been able to push the performance photonic-integrated components beyond other integrated platforms, including ultrahigh Q resonators, optical filters, highly coherent lasers, optical signal processing circuits, nonlinear optical devices, frequency comb generators, and biophotonic system-on-chip. This review paper covers the history of low-loss Si3N4waveguide technology and a survey of worldwide research in a variety of device and applications as well as the status of Si3N4foundries.

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  • Other material platforms have been developed to further extend the capabilities beyond what silicon can offer, including III-V semiconductors, lithium niobate (LN), silicon carbide (SiC), nitrides, diamond, and tantalum pentoxide (Ta 2 O 5 ).

    “While silicon-based photonics has been the workhorse for QPICs owing to the low waveguide loss and the existing foundry infrastructure, other material platforms have been developed to further extend the capabilities beyond what silicon can offer [13], including III-V semiconductors, lithium niobate (LN), silicon carbide (SiC), nitrides, diamond, and tantalum pentoxide (Ta 2 O 5 ).”

    From 2022 Roadmap on integrated quantum photonics (2022) · cites this paper as [13]

    The Introduction (page not available in our copy) identifies III-V photonics and silicon nitride as platforms with capabilities complementary to silicon photonics. It does not substantiate the sentence’s additional examples—lithium niobate, silicon carbide, diamond, and tantalum pentoxide—as developed alternative platforms. (LLM, conf=0.86)

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  • Silicon-based photonics has been the workhorse for QPICs owing to the low waveguide loss and the existing foundry infrastructure.

    “While silicon-based photonics has been the workhorse for QPICs owing to the low waveguide loss and the existing foundry infrastructure, other material platforms have been developed to further extend the capabilities beyond what silicon can offer [13], including III-V semiconductors, lithium niobate (LN), silicon carbide (SiC), nitrides, diamond, and tantalum pentoxide (Ta 2 O 5 ).”

    From 2022 Roadmap on integrated quantum photonics (2022) · cites this paper as [13]

    The Introduction (page unavailable) says silicon-on-insulator photonics benefits from established CMOS infrastructure and has moderate waveguide losses. It lists quantum communication as a PIC application, but does not establish that silicon-based photonics has been the workhorse for quantum photonic integrated circuits or that low waveguide loss is the reason; it describes silicon nitride as offering lower-loss waveguides. (LLM, conf=0.83)

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Research works printed but not linked: 8

  1. [23]23. C. H. Henry, R. F. Kazarinov, H. J. Lee, K. J. Orlowsky, and L. E. Katz, "Low loss Si3N4-SiO2 optical waveguides on Si," Appl. Opt., vol. 26, no. 13, pp. 2621-2624, 1987.
  2. [37]37. M.-C. Tien, J. F. Bauters, M. J. R. Heck, D. J. Blumenthal, and J. E. Bowers, "Ultra-low loss Si3N4 waveguides with low nonlinearity and high power handling capability," Opt. Express, vol. 18, no. 23, pp. 23562-23568, 2010.
  3. [55]55. J. F. Bauters et al., "Ultra-low-loss high-aspect-ratio Si3N4 waveguides," Opt. Express, vol. 19, no. 4, pp. 3163-3174, 2011.
  4. [57]57. D. T. Spencer, J. F. Bauters, M. J. R. Heck, and J. E. Bowers, "Integrated waveguide coupled Si3N4 resonators in the ultrahigh-Q regime," Optica, vol. 1, no. 3, pp. 153-157, 2014.
  5. [58]58. L. Zhuang, D. Marpaung, M. Burla, W. Beeker, A. Leinse, and C. Roeloffzen, "Low-loss, high-index-contrast Si3N4/SiO2 optical waveguides for optical delay lines in microwave photonics signal processing," Opt. Express, vol. 19, no. 23, pp. 23162-23170, 2011.
  6. [68]68. M. Belt et al., "Sidewall gratings in ultra-low-loss Si3N4 planar waveguides," Opt. Express, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 1181-1188, 2013.
  7. [128]128. M. Boerkamp et al., "On-chip optical trapping and Raman spectroscopy using a TripleX dual-waveguide trap," Opt. Express, vol. 22, no. 25, pp. 30528-30537, Dec. 2014.
  8. [129]129. A. Leinse et al., "TriPleX waveguide platform: Low-loss technology over a wide wavelength range," Proc. SPIE, vol. 8767, p. 87670E, May 2013.

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Authors
Blumenthal, D. J., Heideman, R., Geuzebroek, D., Leinse, A., & Roeloffzen, C.
Affiliations
  • University of California, Santa Barbara (US)
  • LioniX (Netherlands) (NL)
ORCID
Venue
Proceedings of the IEEE
Publisher
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Published
2018-12
Volume
106
Issue
12
Pages
2209-2231
ISSN
  • 0018-9219 (ISSN-L)
  • 1558-2256
DOI
10.1109/jproc.2018.2861576
OpenAlex
W2894308888
Cited by
641
References
131
Citations by year
2026: 85 · 2025: 105 · 2024: 118 · 2023: 99 · 2022: 88 · 2021: 72 · 2020: 43 · 2019: 29 · 2018: 2
FWCI
13.95
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Proceedings of the IEEE (publishedVersion)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DoD-N W911NF-04-9-0001 iPhoD HR0011-09-C-01233, EPHI HR0011-12-C-0006, iWOG HR0011-14-C-0111, PRIGM:AIMS N66001-16-C-4017)
  • Keysight Technologies
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Engineering › Electrical and Electronic Engineering › Photonic and Optical Devices
  • Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics › Photorefractive and Nonlinear Optics
  • Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics › Photonic Crystals and Applications
Keywords
silicon nitride, silicon photonics, planar waveguides, low-loss waveguides, photonic integrated circuits, system-on-chip, optical signal processing, high-Q resonators, optical filters, frequency combs, nonlinear optical devices, biophotonics

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