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Brillouin integrated photonics

Nature Photonics volume 13, pages 664–677 (2019)Cite this article

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Abstract

A recent renaissance in Brillouin scattering research has been driven by the increasing maturity of photonic integration platforms and nanophotonics. The result is a new breed of chip-based devices that exploit acousto-optic interactions to create lasers, amplifiers, filters, delay lines and isolators. Here, we provide a detailed overview of Brillouin scattering in integrated waveguides and resonators, covering key concepts such as the stimulation of the Brillouin process, in which the optical field itself induces acoustic vibrations, the importance of acoustic confinement, methods for calculating and measuring Brillouin gain, and the diversity of materials platforms and geometries. Our Review emphasizes emerging applications in microwave photonics, signal processing and sensing, and concludes with a perspective for future directions.

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Fig. 1: Overview of SBS.
Fig. 2: Different geometries used in on-chip SBS experiments.
Fig. 3: The gain for different Brillouin-active waveguides.
Fig. 4: Functionalities enabled by on-chip SBS.
Fig. 5: A chip-scale integrated microwave/RF processor for broadband communications.

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Acknowledgements

B.J.E. acknowledges support from Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage grant (LP170100112) with Harris Corporation, AFOSR/AOARD (FA2386-16-1-4036) and the US Office of Naval Research Global (ONRG) (N62909-18-1-2013). M.J.S., B.J.E. and C.G.P. acknowledge the support of the Australian Research Council (ARC) (Discovery Project DP160101691. G.B. acknowledges support of the Office of Naval Research Director of Research Early Career Grant N00014-17-1-2209 and National Science Foundation grant EFMA-1627184.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Sydney Nano Institute (Sydney Nano), Institute of Photonics and Optical Science (IPOS), School of Physics, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    Benjamin J. Eggleton

  2. School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    Christopher G. Poulton

  3. Department of Applied Physics, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    Peter T. Rakich

  4. MQ Photonics Research Centre and Department of Physics and Astronomy, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    Michael. J. Steel

  5. Mechanical Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA

    Gaurav Bahl

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Eggleton, B.J., Poulton, C.G., Rakich, P.T. et al. Brillouin integrated photonics. Nat. Photonics 13, 664–677 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41566-019-0498-z

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