Overview
Mesophotonics is currently developing and testing photonic crystal
devices and circuits, incorporating a photonic 'band gap'. This
technology has the potential to enable photonics to follow the integration
path of electronics. Mesophotonics intends to implement fully integrated
photonic circuits incorporating both active and passive structures.
Photonics Crystal from Mesophotonics offer multiple unique benefits:-
- Drastic size reductions
- Optical interactions in microns rather than centimetres
- Multiple optical functions on millimetre sized chips
- Provides a library of optical building blocks for chip design
- High efficiency and low loss optics
- Compatible with conventional silicon processing
Planar waveguiding photonic crystals utilise silicon compatible
materials that are currently used in standard CMOS processes. Therefore
it will be possible to implement optical manipulation, optical signal
processing and electronic circuitry on a single substrate employing
technologies already present in a silicon foundry. Mesophotonics
will utilise these opto-electronic integration capabilities in the
development of devices for low cost / high volume applications.
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The Photonic Crystals are based on regular arrays of tiny holes designed with
different symmetry configurations, which are fabricated using
standard lithographic techniques. Their dimensions and distribution
determine the operating wavelength of the device and also
the processing function delivered. The diagram on the left
is an artistic impression of a photonic crystal on a silicon
wafer, the background to the diagram is a picture of a real
photonic crystal device.
Mesophotonics aims to produce customised integrated optics
solutions by:-
- Designing multiple optical functions using common photonic
crystal platform
- Select functions required for customer applications,
e.g. excitation, collection, lasing, filtering and detection.
- Fabricate custom integrated optics chip on silicon platform.
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