Abstract
Silicon photonics is a promising technology to address the demand for dense and integrated next-generation optical interconnections due to its complementary-metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) compatibility. However, one of the key building blocks, the silicon modulator, suffers from several drawbacks, including a limited bandwidth, a relatively large footprint, and high power consumption. The graphene-based silicon modulator, which benefits from the excellent optical properties of the two-dimensional graphene material with its unique band structure, has significantly advanced the above critical figures of merit. In this work, we review the state-of-the-art graphene-based silicon modulators operating in various mechanisms, i.e., thermal-optical, electro-optical, and plasmonic. It is shown that graphene-based silicon modulators possess the potential to have satisfactory characteristics in intra- and inter-chip connections.
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Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 61535002 and 61635001)
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Shu, Hw., Jin, M., Tao, Ys. et al. Graphene-based silicon modulators. Frontiers Inf Technol Electronic Eng 20, 458–471 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1631/FITEE.1800407
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1631/FITEE.1800407