Hybrid Lithium Niobate and Silicon Photonic Waveguides

Abstract: We describe a hybrid lithium niobate (LN) / silicon (Si) optical waveguiding platform at near infrared wavelengths. Various optical circuit elements, such as waveguides, bends, and couplers are demonstrated in two hybrid cross sections, A and B, with different LN confinement factors (32% and 90%, respectively) of the fundamental quasi TE mode. Such a large LN confinement factor is achieved with adiabatic tapers that preserve the symmetry of the fundamental quasi TE mode and prevent mode rotation. We find the average propagation loss in cross section B to be 4.3 dB/cm with a standard deviation of 2.1 dB/cm, comparable with a 3 um SiO2 clad (in place of LN) Si waveguide whose average propagation loss was 3.1 dB/cm with a standard deviation of 2.1 dB/cm.