• Advanced Photonics
  • Vol. 5, Issue 3, 036007 (2023)
Haowen Shu1、†, Lin Chang2, Chenghao Lao3, Bitao Shen1, Weiqiang Xie2, Xuguang Zhang1, Ming Jin1, Yuansheng Tao1, Ruixuan Chen1, Zihan Tao1, Huajin Chang1, Shaohua Yu1、4, Qifan Yang3、5, Xingjun Wang1、4、5、*, and John E. Bowers2、*
Author Affiliations
  • 1Peking University, School of Electronics, State Key Laboratory of Advanced Optical Communication Systems and Networks, Beijing, China
  • 2University of California, Santa Barbara, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Santa Barbara, California, United States
  • 3Peking University, School of Physics, State Key Laboratory for Artificial Microstructure and Mesoscopic Physics, Beijing, China
  • 4Peng Cheng Laboratory, Shenzhen, China
  • 5Peking University, Frontiers Science Center for Nano-Optoelectronics, Beijing, China
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    DOI: 10.1117/1.AP.5.3.036007 Cite this Article Set citation alerts
    Haowen Shu, Lin Chang, Chenghao Lao, Bitao Shen, Weiqiang Xie, Xuguang Zhang, Ming Jin, Yuansheng Tao, Ruixuan Chen, Zihan Tao, Huajin Chang, Shaohua Yu, Qifan Yang, Xingjun Wang, John E. Bowers. Submilliwatt, widely tunable coherent microcomb generation with feedback-free operation[J]. Advanced Photonics, 2023, 5(3): 036007 Copy Citation Text show less

    Abstract

    Microcombs are revolutionizing optoelectronics by providing parallel, mutually coherent wavelength channels for time-frequency metrology and information processing. To implement this essential function in integrated photonic systems, it is desirable to drive microcombs directly with an on-chip laser in a simple and flexible way. However, two major difficulties have prevented this goal: (1) generating mode-locked comb states usually requires a significant amount of pump power and (2) the requirement to align laser and resonator frequency significantly complicates operation and limits the tunability of the comb lines. Here, we address these problems by using microresonators on an AlGaAs on-insulator platform to generate dark-pulse microcombs. This highly nonlinear platform dramatically relaxes fabrication requirements and leads to a record-low pump power of <1 mW for coherent comb generation. Dark-pulse microcombs facilitated by thermally controlled avoided mode crossings are accessed by direct distributed feedback laser pumping. Without any feedback or control circuitries, the comb shows good coherence and stability. With around 150 mW on-chip power, this approach also leads to an unprecedentedly wide tuning range of over one free spectral range (97.5 GHz). Our work provides a route to realize power-efficient, simple, and reconfigurable microcombs that can be seamlessly integrated with a wide range of photonic systems.
    Supplementary Materials
    Haowen Shu, Lin Chang, Chenghao Lao, Bitao Shen, Weiqiang Xie, Xuguang Zhang, Ming Jin, Yuansheng Tao, Ruixuan Chen, Zihan Tao, Huajin Chang, Shaohua Yu, Qifan Yang, Xingjun Wang, John E. Bowers. Submilliwatt, widely tunable coherent microcomb generation with feedback-free operation[J]. Advanced Photonics, 2023, 5(3): 036007
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