All-optical flip-flop by nonlinear coupling of microring and waveguide

Careful studies of coupling show that transmittance power between microring and waveguide is dependant to field intensity. Also more researches show that optical multistable behavior of microring had been affected by nonlinear power coupling efficiency in high field intensities. Operation of microring in nonlinear regions can be so useful in designing all optical switches and control techniques. In this paper has been proposed an all-optical flip-flop based on nonlinear treatment of microring.     

All-optical flip-flop based on vertical cavity semiconductor optical amplifiers

We report the operation of an all-optical set-reset (SR) flip-flop based on vertical cavity semiconductor optical amplifiers (VCSOAs). This flip-flop is cascadable, has low optical switching power (~10 microW), and has the potential to be integrated on a small footprint (~100 microm(2)). The flip-flop is composed of two cross-coupled electrically pumped VCSOA inverters and uses the principles of cross-gain modulation, polarization gain anisotropy, and highly nonlinear gain characteristics to achieve flip-flop functionality. We believe that, when integrated on chip, this type of all-optical flip-flop opens new prospects for implementing all-optical fast memories and timing regeneration circuits.     

Enhanced linear and nonlinear optical phase response of AlGaAs microring resonators

We have constructed and characterized several optical microring resonators with scale sizes of the order of 10 microm. These devices are intended to serve as building blocks for engineerable linear and nonlinear photonic media. Light is guided vertically by an epitaxially grown structure and transversely by deeply etched air-clad sidewalls. We report on the spectral phase transfer characteristics of such resonators. We also report the observation of a pi-rad Kerr nonlinear phase shift accumulated in a single compact ring resonator evidenced by all-optical switching between output ports of a resonator-enhanced Mach-Zehnder interferometer.     

All-optical flip-flop in wideband PhC-based filter with Kerr saturable nonlinearity

In the paper, we investigate dynamic properties of the wideband optical filter on the basis of nonlinear photonic crystal. An all-optical flip-flop using ultra-short pulses with duration lower than 200 fs is found in such filters and has been investigated. Switching on and switching off dynamics is considered in detail. There have been carried out studies of the stability of the PhC nonlinear filter with respect to variation of the operating wavelength and radiation intensity.     

All-optical time-division demultiplexing and spatial pulse routing with a GaAs/AlGaAs microring resonator

We report what is to our knowledge the first demonstration of all-optical time-division demultiplexing and spatial pulse routing in a compact nonlinear GaAs/AlGaAs microring resonator operating at 1.55 microm . Switching is through the refractive-index change induced by two-photon absorption. The switching time of the device, limited by the ring-charging time and the recombination time of the induced carriers, is measured to be 30 ps. The switching on-off contrast, limited by the slight mismatch between the input and output coupling coefficients, exceeds 8 dB. The device can be used for time-division multiplexing as well.     

All-optical flip-flop composed of a single nonlinear passive microring coupled to two straight waveguides

Microrings can have different hysteresis characteristics at their different resonance frequencies. They can be used as a multi-hysteresis optical component. In this paper an optical D-flip-flop circuit composed of a single nonlinear passive microring coupled to two straight waveguide based on the Kerr effect is proposed. The proposed circuit can operate as an optical digital circuit which synchronizes input DATA with the CLOCK of the circuit. A simple analytical model for hysteresis design and the transient analysis of the proposed D-flip-flop are presented. According to our model, the switching time of the flip-flop is in the order of 10 ps.     

Single-photon all-optical switching using coupled microring resonators

We study the nonlinear phase response of a microring resonator coupled to a bus waveguide and the use of this nonlinear phase shift to store information in the microring resonator and enhance the switching characteristics of a Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI). By introducing coupling between adjacent microring resonators, the switching characteristics of the MZI can be exponentially enhanced as a function of the number of microring resonators, when compared to the linear enhancement for uncoupled resonators. With only a few moderate-finesse microring resonators, the switching power can be reduced to attowatt level, allowing for photonic switching devices that operate at single-photon level in ordinary optical waveguides.      

Photonic logic NOR gate based on two symmetric microring resonators

We demonstrate an all-optical NOR logic gate based on symmetric GaAs-AlGaAs microring resonators whose resonances are closely matched. Two input pump data streams are tuned close to one resonance of the symmetric microrings to switch a probe beam tuned to another resonance by two-photon absorption. The switching energy of the gate is 20 pJ/pulse, and the switching window is 40 ps, limited by the carrier lifetime. The use of two rings provides for better cascading in photonic logic circuits because of the higher number of available ports.     

一种新型全光开关

提出了一种用指数型变耦合系数定向耦合器同高斯型变耦合系数定向耦合器级联所构成的新型全光开关。理论分析及数值模拟均表明,它同用常系数定向耦合器级联所得的器件相比,具有一个很大的优点,即可以消除开关曲线在过开关区中的振荡,因而具有更好的开关特性;同时,它同用高斯型变耦合系数定向耦合器级联所得的器件相比,具有陡峭的动态开关区(即功率透过率从0逐渐升至1的区域)。综上所述,该级联耦合器更加适合于做全光开关,且在满足一定的开关曲线的要求下,可以通过改变各级联耦合器的参量以改变单元耦合器的数目。     

High-speed all-optical switching in ion-implanted silicon-on-insulator microring resonators

We demonstrate high-speed all-optical switching via vertical excitation of an electron-hole plasma in an oxygen-ion implanted silicon-on-insulator microring resonator. Based on the plasma dispersion effect the spectral response of the device is rapidly modulated by photoinjection and subsequent recombination of charge carriers at artificially introduced fast recombination centers. At an implantation dose of 1 x 10(12) cm(-2) the carrier lifetime is reduced to 55 ps, which facilitates optical switching of signal light in the 1.55 mum wavelength range at modulation speeds larger than 5 Gbits/s.     

Optimal Design of the Nonlinear Phase-Shift via Second-Order Nonlinear Cascading in the Silica Optical Fiber

Based on the second-order nonlinear effect in the periodically thermal/electric-field poling silica optical fiber and starting from the coupled-mode equations, the analytic expressions of nonlinear phase-shift of all-optical switching under the condition of strong pump light are derived in this paper. The nonlinear phase-shift is optimized by selecting the parameters properly.     

半导体光放大器的稳态增益饱和特性

高速全光逻辑门是实现光分组交换、光计算和未来高速大容量光传输的关键器件,近年来受到广泛的关注。半导体光放大器（SOA）因为具备体积小、工作波长范围宽、响应时间短及良好的非线性特性等优点,成为研制高速全光逻辑器件的首选。采用分段模型分析了SOA的稳态增益饱和特性,通过数值求解载流子速率方程和光传输方程对其特性进行了仿真实现。结果表明,SOA在入射光功率不同时会表现出明显的非线性;在一定范围内增加光功率,SOA增益持续增加,继续增加入射光功率,SOA逐渐进入饱和吸收状态,增益反而降低。     

Remote optical control of an optical flip-flop

We experimentally demonstrate control of a holding-beam-enabled optical flip-flop by means of optical signals that act in a remote fashion. These optical-control signals vary the holding-beam power by means of cross-gain modulation within a remotely located semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA). The power-modulated holding beam then travels through a resonant-type SOA, where flip-flop action occurs as the holding-beam power falls above and below the switching thresholds of the bistable hysteresis. Control is demonstrated using submilliwatt pulses whose wavelengths are not restricted to the vicinity of the holding beam. Benefits of remote control include the potential for controlling multiple flip-flops with a single pair of optical signals and for realizing all-optical control of any holding-beam-enabled flip-flop.     

All-optical logic gates with bacteriorhodopsin

All-optical logic gates with bacteriorhodopsin (bR) protein molecules have been demonstrated based on all-optical switching of a cw probe laser beam by multiple pulsed pump laser beams due to nonlinear intensity-induced excited-state absorption. A cw probe laser beam at 640 nm corresponding to the peak absorption of O-state in the bR photocycle is switched by a pulsed pump laser beam at 570 nm corresponding to the maximum initial B state absorption, at relatively low powers. The switching characteristics have been used to design all-optical NOT and the universal NOR and NAND logic gates and the effect of various parameters such as variation in pump pulse width, pump intensity, lifetime of O state and absorption cross-section of the B state at probe wavelength on the switching characteristics has been analyzed.     

Resonant modal conversion in a two-mode waveguide

We characterize a system consisting of a two-mode waveguide coupled to a single-mode microring resonator possibly presenting a nonlinear response of Kerr type. By using the scattering parameter formalism extended to the multimode domain, we show that in the linear regime and for an ideally transparent medium, each resonance of the system can be exploited to perform complete even-to-odd (respectively, odd-to-even) modal conversion. Moreover, when the Kerr nonlinearity is effective, the microring enables a power-dependent modal switching mediated by phase bistability. Thanks to its mode-processing capabilities, this configuration is suitable to find application as a functional building-block in mode-division multiplexing (MDM) photonic integrated circuits.     

Controlled shift of optical bistability hysteresis curve and storage of optical signals in a four-level atomic system

The dependence of the shift of an optical bistability hysteresis curve on the nonlinear phase shift induced by a controlling light is observed in a four-level atomic system of 87 Rb inside an optical ring cavity. In the process the intensity of the coupling beam keeps constant and the atomic system is operated at near conditions of coherent population trapping due to atomic coherence. The refractive and absorptive chi3 nonlinearities enhanced by atomic coherence provide the physical mechanism of the phenomena. Based on the effects, all-optical flip-flop and storage of optical pulse signals with a low peak power of several tens of microwatts are implemented.     

Flip-flop operation in opto-thermal bistable devices with localized absorption

We consider nonlinear interferometric devices based on opto-thermal bistability with localized absorption and show how the introduction of composite structures within the interferometer makes feasible its setting and resetting between stable outputs by applying positive light pulses on different parts of the bistable device. Experimental demonstration of all-optical flip-flop operation is reported for two interferometric configurations, one of them being extremely simple and well suited for parallel processing.     

Polarization encoded all-optical quaternary R-S flip-flop using binary latch

The developments of different multi-valued logic (MVL) systems have received considerable interests in recent years all over the world. In electronics, efforts have already been made to incorporate multi-valued system in logic and arithmetic data processing. But, very little efforts have been given in realization of MVL with optics. In this paper we present novel designs of certain all-optical circuits that can be used for realizing multi-valued logic functions. Polarization encoded all-optical quaternary (4-valued) R-S flip-flop is proposed and described. Two key circuits (all-optical encoder/decoder and a binary latch) are designed first. They are used to realize quaternary flip-flop in all-optical domain. Here the different quaternary logical states are represented by different polarized state of light. Terahertz Optical Asymmetric Demultiplexer (TOAD) based interferometric switch can take an important role. Computer simulation result confirming described methods and conclusion are given in this paper.     

基于SOA偏振旋转光开关的性能研究

利用SOA中的偏振主态的概念,理论分析了SOA中的偏振旋转的问题,并以此为基础提出了一种基于SOA中偏振旋转的光开关。这种光开关以SOA和偏振分柬器（Polarization Beam Combiner,PBC）为核心元件,利用光在SOA中的偏振旋转实现了光信号的开关,这种光开关具有开关速度快,功率均衡,易集成等优点,实验得到的开关消光比达到24dB以上,开关速度达到20ns。     

A method of developing wavelength encoded all-optical S–R flip-flop by the uses of semiconductor optical amplifier based Mach–Zenhder interferometer and phase conjugation system

A scheme for a high-speed wavelength encoded all-optical S–R flip-flop (or a digital memory cell for storing of optical bits) based on wavelength conversion (MZI) in semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) and phase conjugation system (PCS) is proposed. The switching action of semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) does not give too high operational speed because of electrical pumping power. But optical phase conjugation mechanism gives us ultrahigh operational speed. So, joint use of them gives rise to a more high speed system comparatively to only SOA based switches. Here two logic states of the whole system is encoded by two wavelengths as well as frequencies, since the information in the bit is unaffected throughout the communication not having regard to the loss of light energy due to reflection, refraction polarization, etc.