Electro-optic photonic devices based on hybrid femtosecond laser written microstructures

• Grant number: 19/13673-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: November 18, 2019
• End date: May 17, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Physics - Condensed Matter Physics
• Principal Investigator: Cleber Renato Mendonça
• Grantee: Franciele Renata Henrique
• Supervisor: Rachel Grange
• Host Institution: Instituto de Física de São Carlos (IFSC). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland
• Associated to the scholarship: 15/22392-3 - Optical nonlinearities in microstructures produced by two-photon polymerization, BP.DR

Abstract

Electro-optic (EO) modulators are key devices for photonic applications, since they can be used to encode signals in optics communications, for frequency generation, Q-switch in laser cavities, etc. With the advent of integrated photonics, EO devices based on waveguides have gained attention. Due to their ease of processing in the micro and nano scale, polymers are interesting platforms for the fabrication of EO devices based on waveguides. Furthermore, high nonlinear molecules can be easily incorporated to the polymeric matrix, allowing for the tailoring of the device EO properties. Among the different techniques used in the processing of polymeric platforms, femtosecond laser direct writing, or more specifically the two-photon polymerization technique, is particularly interesting, as tridimensional microstructures can be readily produced in a single step process. This way, in this project we propose the design, fabrication and characterization of EO devices based on fs-laser written polymeric microstructures doped with EO chromophores. We also propose the merging of these structures EO properties with the high quality guiding properties of fs-laser written waveguides in special glasses, thus producing hybrid polymer-glass devices.