Efficient GHz electro-optical modulation with a nonlocal lithium niobate metasurface in the linear and nonlinear regime

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Di Francescantonio, Agostino, Sabatti, Alessandra, Weigand, Helena, Bailly, Elise, Vincenti, Maria Antonietta, Carletti, Luca, Kellner, Jost, Zilli, Attilio, Finazzi, Marco, Celebrano, Michele, Grange, Rachel
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Di Francescantonio, Agostino
Sabatti, Alessandra
Weigand, Helena
Bailly, Elise
Vincenti, Maria Antonietta
Carletti, Luca
Kellner, Jost
Zilli, Attilio
Finazzi, Marco
Celebrano, Michele
Grange, Rachel
author_facet Di Francescantonio, Agostino
Sabatti, Alessandra
Weigand, Helena
Bailly, Elise
Vincenti, Maria Antonietta
Carletti, Luca
Kellner, Jost
Zilli, Attilio
Finazzi, Marco
Celebrano, Michele
Grange, Rachel
contents Electro-optical modulation is widely employed for optical signal processing and in laser technology. To date, it is efficiently realized in integrated photonic systems as well as in bulk optics devices. Yet, the achievement of modulators exploiting Pockels effect in flat optics, essential to scale down the electric radiation-optical control in free space, currently lag behind bulk and on-chip integrated platforms in terms efficiency and speed. We bridge this gap realizing a metasurface based on lithium niobate (LiNbO3) on insulator that leverages on resonances with quality-factor as high as 8e3 to achieve fast electrical modulation of both linear and nonlinear optical properties. LiNbO3, well known for its high nonlinear susceptibility and wide transparency window across the infrared and visible spectrum, is employed to realize an asymmetric, one-dimensional array of nanowires, exhibiting resonances with linewidth < 0.2 nm. By applying a CMOS-compatible electrical bias, the metasurface imparts a relative reflectivity modulation around 0.1, with a modulation efficiency, defined as relative modulation per applied Volt, larger than 0.01 V^-1 on a bandwidth of about 1 GHz. We also demonstrated more than one order of magnitude intensity modulation of the second harmonic seeded by a continuous-wave laser, with a modulation efficiency of about 0.12 V^-1. This dual modulation capability, rooted in the interplay between optical resonances and electric field manipulation, holds significant potential for cutting-edge applications in high-speed photonics, nonlinear optics, and reconfigurable communication systems. Our findings highlight the transformative potential of LiNbO3-based metasurfaces for integration into next-generation optical technologies that demand rapid, efficient electrical control of light.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2412_03422
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Efficient GHz electro-optical modulation with a nonlocal lithium niobate metasurface in the linear and nonlinear regime
Di Francescantonio, Agostino
Sabatti, Alessandra
Weigand, Helena
Bailly, Elise
Vincenti, Maria Antonietta
Carletti, Luca
Kellner, Jost
Zilli, Attilio
Finazzi, Marco
Celebrano, Michele
Grange, Rachel
Optics
Applied Physics
Electro-optical modulation is widely employed for optical signal processing and in laser technology. To date, it is efficiently realized in integrated photonic systems as well as in bulk optics devices. Yet, the achievement of modulators exploiting Pockels effect in flat optics, essential to scale down the electric radiation-optical control in free space, currently lag behind bulk and on-chip integrated platforms in terms efficiency and speed. We bridge this gap realizing a metasurface based on lithium niobate (LiNbO3) on insulator that leverages on resonances with quality-factor as high as 8e3 to achieve fast electrical modulation of both linear and nonlinear optical properties. LiNbO3, well known for its high nonlinear susceptibility and wide transparency window across the infrared and visible spectrum, is employed to realize an asymmetric, one-dimensional array of nanowires, exhibiting resonances with linewidth < 0.2 nm. By applying a CMOS-compatible electrical bias, the metasurface imparts a relative reflectivity modulation around 0.1, with a modulation efficiency, defined as relative modulation per applied Volt, larger than 0.01 V^-1 on a bandwidth of about 1 GHz. We also demonstrated more than one order of magnitude intensity modulation of the second harmonic seeded by a continuous-wave laser, with a modulation efficiency of about 0.12 V^-1. This dual modulation capability, rooted in the interplay between optical resonances and electric field manipulation, holds significant potential for cutting-edge applications in high-speed photonics, nonlinear optics, and reconfigurable communication systems. Our findings highlight the transformative potential of LiNbO3-based metasurfaces for integration into next-generation optical technologies that demand rapid, efficient electrical control of light.
title Efficient GHz electro-optical modulation with a nonlocal lithium niobate metasurface in the linear and nonlinear regime
topic Optics
Applied Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.03422