Light Interconnects Laboratory
School of Microelectronics
Southern University of Science and Technology
About LICONLAB
LICONLAB (Light Interconnects Laboratory) is an academic research laboratory founded by Dr. Qiancheng Zhao in the School of Microelectronics at Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech). The Lab specializes in integrated photonics research in high-tech areas such as next-generation optical communications, integrated lasers, nonlinear photonics, and quantum photonics applications.
Dr. Qiancheng Zhao is currently an assistant professor in the School of Microelectronics at the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech). Prior to joining SUSTech, he worked at the University of California, Santa Barbara as a postdoctoral researcher, and at Apple Inc. as a signal integrity engineer. He obtained his Ph.D. degree from the University of California, Irvine, and bachelor's degree from Zhejiang University.
News
[2024/03/20] Our paper was published in Optics Express
We report a Ta2O5 photonic platform with a propagation loss of 0.49 dB/cm at 1550 nm, of 0.86 dB/cm at 780 nm, and of 3.76 dB/cm at 2000 nm. The thermal bistability measurement is conducted in the entire C-band for the first time to reveal the absorption loss of Ta2O5 waveguides, offering guidelines for further reduction of the waveguide loss. We also characterize the Ta2O5 waveguide temperature response, which shows favorable thermal stability. The fabrication process temperature is below 350°C, which is friendly to integration with active optoelectronic components.
The paper can be accessed on Optics Express website.
[2024/02/17] Our paper was accepted in the 2024 CLEO Conference
We report a GaP-OI resonator with a Q factor of (2.3±0.3)×104 and a TDWS of 53.9 pm/K, which shows great promise of the GaP-OI platform in thermal turning and optical signal processing.
Congratulations to Weiren Cheng! The 2024 CLEO Conference website can be accessed here.
[2024/02/13] Our paper was published in IEEE Photonics Journal
We describe a synergistic optimization approach that enables highly efficient frequency translation of a Kerr optical frequency comb (OFC) from 1550 nm to 775 nm in a gallium phosphide-on-insulator (GaP-OI) microresonator. Key distinctions from previous GaP-OI works which focused on individual optical nonlinearity are that this work not only emphasizes the interaction between the second- and third-order nonlinearity, but also explores the tunability of the χ(2)-translated OFC through geometric and temperature tuning. The sum-frequency (SF) comb at 775 nm has a geometric tuning sensitivity of 354 GHz/nm, and a thermal tuning sensitivity of 24.8 GHz/K, paving the way for post-fabrication trimming and in-situ spectral shaping, with a broader potential to realize highly efficient, wide-spectrum, and tunable on-chip nonlinear sources.
The paper can be accessed on IEEE Photonics Journal website.
[2023/12/19] Our paper was accepted in the 2024 OFC Conference
We demonstrate a Ta2O5 photonic platform with a propagation loss of 0.5dB/cm and a thermo-optic coefficient of 2.3×10-6 /K at 1550 nm. The process temperature is below 350℃, friendly to integration with other optoelectronic components.
Congratulations to Zhaoting Geng! The 2024 OFC Conference website can be accessed here.
[2023/07/12] Our paper was published in Optics Letters
We report a gallium phosphide-on-insulator (GaP-OI) photonic platform fabricated by an intermediate-layer bonding process aiming to increase the manufacture scalability in a low-cost manner. This is enabled by the "etch-n-transfer" sequence, which results in inverted rib waveguide structures. The shallow-etched 1.8 μm-wide waveguide has a propagation loss of 23.5 dB/cm at 1550 nm wavelength. Supercontinuum generation based on the self-phase modulation effect is observed when the waveguides are pumped by femtosecond pulses. The nonlinear refractive index of GaP, n2, is extracted to be 1.9×10-17 m2/W, demonstrating the great promise of the GaP-OI platform in third-order nonlinear applications.
The paper can be accessed on Optics Letters website.
[2023/07/07] Our paper was published in JOSA B
In this paper, we theoretically demonstrate two-color Kerr frequency combs generation in the GaP-OI platform using a single pump source. This is enabled by dispersion engineering on a partially etched coupled ring resonator whose anomalous dispersion is wide enough to support Kerr frequency comb generation at both 3100 nm and 1550 nm wavelengths. The pump source at 1550 nm is realized through frequency doubling of the 3100 nm light in a GaP-OI straight waveguide. Compared with other cascaded second- and third-order nonlinear processes, the proposed approach can reach high-power and wide-bandwidth combs at both SWIR and MIR regions.
The paper can be accessed on JOSA B website.
[2022/06/30] Call for Papers! The "Integrated Waveguide-Based Photonic Devices" special issue is now open for submission!
This Special Issue focuses on the state-of-the-art achievements in integrated waveguide-based photonic devices, with a broader aim to present novel material, design methodology, and fabrication techniques as well as cutting-edge applications.
The submission deadline is June 30, 2023. More submission information can be found here.
RESEARCH
Nonlinear integrated photonic devices
Nonlinear integrated photonics plays important roles in optical communications, sensing, spectroscopy, etc. Numerous nonlinear devices such as light sources, modulators, and sensors have been demonstrated thanks to the rich optical nonlinear mechanisms. Miniaturization of the photonic devices not only reduces the cost but also makes complex systems suitable for portable and field deployed applications. On-chip photonic integration is an enabling factor to miniaturize nonlinear optical devices. With the development of highly nonlinear photonic integration platform, novel on-chip nonlinear devices will emerge with unprecedent performance, and will find useful in quantum photonics, machine learning, optical neuron computing and other leading-edge applications.
Our group will focus on the frequency comb generation, second harmonic generation, supercontinuum generation and related nonlinear phenomena in the emerging gallium phosphide-on-insulator platform.
On-chip optical reference cavities
Optical reference cavities are essential components in laser linewidth narrowing and frequency stabilization. Once tightly locked to a frequency reference, the frequency stability of the laser is determined by the stability of the cavity. Traditional benchtop Fabry-Perot reference cavities occupy a large operation space. It is desirable to miniaturize these cavities harnessing the photonic integrated waveguide-based technologies, which may foster a blossom of integrated narrow linewidth lasers.
Our group study the frequency stability of on-chip microresonators and their applications in laser frequency locking. The research topics cover the athermal waveguides, high-Q resonators, frequency locking systems, temperature sensing techniques, and related areas.
Silicon nitride photonic devices
Silicon nitride is a versatile photonic material that is compatible with silicon photonics. It has moderate refractive index, low propagation loss, non-negligible third-order nonlinearity, and thus is widely used in passive photonic devices for optical interconnecting, optical nonlinear, bio-photonic applications. Integrating functional components empowers silicon nitride passive devices unprecedented functionalities that could only be realized in active photonic devices, such as modulators, detectors, etc., opening new possibilities for a whole new class of integrated devices and systems.
Our group has rich experience in nanowire-incorporated silicon nitride waveguide devices, such as optical leaky wave antennas and plasmo-thermomechanical radiation detectors. We are working on silicon nitride equivalent materials to establish a new photonic integration platform.
TEAM
PUBLICATIONS
Invited Talks
- Qiancheng Zhao, “Integrated Gallium Phosphide-on-Insulator Devices for Nonlinear Photonics”, Forum on Photonic Integrated Circuits, Xiamen, 2023 (Invited)
- Qiancheng Zhao, “On-chip Optical Reference Cavities”, IEEE the 7th Optoelectronics Global Conference (OGC 2022), Shenzhen, 2022 (Invited)
- Qiancheng Zhao, “Waveguide-based Optical Reference Cavities”, 2022 Asia Communications and Photonics Conference (ACP 2022), Shenzhen, 2022 (Invited)
- Qiancheng Zhao, "Photonic Integrated Optical Reference Cavity", Zhuoyue Quantum Salon, Institute for Quantum Science and Engineering, Shenzhen, 2022 (Invited)
- Qiancheng Zhao, “Integrated optical reference cavity for laser frequency stabilization”, IEEE the 6th Optoelectronics Global Conference (OGC 2021), Shenzhen, 2021 (Invited)
Books/Chapters
Edited by Ozdal Boyraz and Qiancheng Zhao, Silicon Photonics Bloom, ISBN 978-3-03936-908-9, MDPI AG, 2020
Recent Journal Publications
- Zhaoting Geng#, Weiren Cheng#, Zhiwei Yan, Qiyuan Yi, Zhenyu Liu, Mingjian You, Xiaolun Yu, Pengzhuo Wu, Ning Ding, Xingyu Tang, Min Wang, Li Shen, and Qiancheng Zhao*, "Low-loss tantalum pentoxide photonics with a CMOS-compatible process," Opt. Express, 32(7), 12291–12302, 2024.
- Pengzhuo Wu, Weiren Cheng, Ning Ding, Xingyu Tang, Zhaoting Geng, Zhenyu Liu, Mingjian You, Xiaolun Yu, Yi Li*, and Qiancheng Zhao*, "Investigation of χ(2)-translated Optical Frequency Combs Tunability in Gallium Phosphide-on-Insulator Resonators," IEEE Photonics Journal 16(2), 1–8, 2024.
Yatao Yang, Yifan Wang, Yongxian Yan, Weiren Cheng, Qiancheng Zhao*, and Yi Li*, "On-Chip Single-Molecule Fluorescence Enhancement via Slotted Gallium Phosphide Nanodisks at Anapole States," Advanced Optical Materials, 2301444, 2023.
Weiren Cheng#, Zhaoting Geng#, Zhuoyu Yu, Yihan Liu, Yatao Yang, Pengzhuo Wu, Houling Ji, Xiaolun Yu, Yifan Wang, Changjing Bao, Yi Li*, and Qiancheng Zhao*, "Wafer-scale inverted gallium phosphide-on-insulator rib waveguides for nonlinear photonics," Opt. Lett., OL 48(14), 3781–3784, 2023.
Houling Ji, Zhaoting Geng, Weiren Cheng, Pengzhuo Wu, Zhuoyu Yu, Yihan Liu, Xiaolun Yu, Yi Li*, and Qiancheng Zhao*, "High-power two-color Kerr frequency comb generation on the gallium phosphide-on-insulator platform at SWIR and MIR spectra," JOSA B 40(8), 1976–1985, 2023.
Zhaoting Geng, Houling Ji, Zhuoyu Yu, Weiren Cheng, Pengzhuo Wu, Yi Li*, and Qiancheng Zhao*, “Dispersion-flattened Concentric Structure for Microcomb Bandwidth Broadening in GaP-OI Resonators.” JOSA B, 40(3), 673-618, 2023.
Yongxian Yan, Tao Zhu, Qiancheng Zhao, Rodrigo Berté*, and Y. Li*, "Launching directional hypersonic surface waves in monolithic gallium phosphide nanodisks: two holes are better than one," Nanoscale (2023).
Qiancheng Zhao, Mark W. Harrington, Andrei Isichenko, Kaikai Liu, Ryan O. Behunin, Scott B. Papp, Peter T. Rakich, Chad W. Hoyt, Chad Fertig, and Daniel J. Blumenthal*, “Integrated Reference Cavity with Dual-mode Optical Thermometry for Frequency Correction”, Optica, vol. 8, no. 11 (2021).
Nitesh Chauhan, Andrei Isichenko, Kaikai Liu, Jiawei Wang, Qiancheng Zhao, Ryan O. Behunin, Peter T. Rakich, Andrew M. Jayich, Chad Fertig, Chad W. Hoyt, and Daniel J. Blumenthal*. “Visible light photonic integrated Brillouin laser”. Nat Commun 12, 4685 (2021)
Matthew Puckett, Kaikai Liu, Nitesh Chauhan, Qiancheng Zhao, Naijun Jin, Haotian Cheng, Jianfeng Wu, Ryan O. Behunin, Peter T. Rakich, Karl D. Nelson, Daniel J. Blumenthal*. "422 Million intrinsic quality factor planar integrated all-waveguide resonator with sub-MHz linewidth." Nat Commun 12, 934 (2021)
Qiancheng Zhao, Ryan O. Behunin, Peter T. Rakich, Nitesh Chauhan, Andrei Isichenko, Jiawei Wang, Chad W. Hoyt, Chad Fertig, Mu hong Lin, and Daniel J. Blumenthal*. "Low-loss Low Thermo-Optic Coefficient Ta2O5 on crystal quartz planar optical waveguides," APL Photonics 5.11 (2020): 116103. (Editor’s Pick)
Qiancheng Zhao* and Ozdal Boyraz*. "Editorial for the Special Issue on Silicon Photonics Bloom." Micromachines 2020, 11, 670
Mohammad Wahiduzzaman Khan, Qiancheng Zhao, Parinaz Sadri-Moshkenani, Md Shafiqul Islam, and Ozdal Boyraz*. "Graphene-incorporated plasmo-thermomechanical infrared radiation detection." JOSA B 37, no. 3 (2020): 774-783
Qiancheng Zhao, Mohammad Wahiduzzaman Khan, Shiva Farzinazar, Jaeho Lee, and Ozdal Boyraz*, "Plasmo-thermomechanical radiation detector with on-chip optical readout," Opt. Express 26, 29638-29650 (2018).
Qiancheng Zhao, Parinaz Sadri-Moshkenani, Mohammad Wahiduzzaman Khan, Rasul Torun and Ozdal Boyraz*, "On-Chip Bimetallic Plasmo-Thermomechanical Detectors for Mid-Infrared Radiation," in IEEE Photonics Technology Letters, vol. 29, no. 17, pp. 1459-1462, Sept.1, 1 2017.
Recent Conference Publications
- Yatao Yang*, Yongxian Yan, Yifan Wang, Weiren Cheng, Qiancheng Zhao*, and Yi Li*, "Gallium phosphide nanoantenna controls enhanced single-molecule fluorescence," in Nanophotonics and Micro/Nano Optics IX (SPIE, 2023), Vol. 12773, pp. 102–106.
- Weiren Cheng#, Zhaoting Geng, Zhuoyu Yu, Yihan Liu, Yatao Yang, Pengzhuo Wu, Xiaolun Yu, Yifan Wang, Changjing Bao, Yi Li*, and Qiancheng Zhao*, "Supercontinuum Generation in Inverted Gallium Phosphide-on-Insulator Rib Waveguides," in 2023 Opto-Electronics and Communications Conference (OECC), 2023, pp. 1–3. (Post Deadline)
- Houling Ji, Zhaoting Geng, Weiren Cheng, Zhuoyu Yu, Pengzhuo Wu, Yi Li*, and Qiancheng Zhao* “Design of Partially Etched GaP-OI Microresonators for Two-Color Kerr Soliton Generation at NIR and MIR,” in 2022 Asia Communications and Photonics Conference (ACP), p. 1622–1625, 2022.
- Zhaoting Geng#, Houling Ji, Zhuoyu Yu, Weiren Cheng, Yi Li*, and Qiancheng Zhao*, "Flexible Dispersion Engineering in Thin GaP-OI Frequency Comb Resonator Design," in 2022 IEEE 7th Optoelectronics Global Conference, p. 218-221, 2022
Qiancheng Zhao*, Zhaoting Geng, Houling Ji, and Yi Li, “GaP-OI Resonator Design for Octave-spanning Kerr Soliton Frequency Comb Generation,” in Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (2022), Paper JW3B.16.
- Qiancheng Zhao, Mark W. Harrington, Andrei Isichenko, Debapam Bose, Jiawei Wang, Kaikai Liu, Ryan O. Behunin, Peter T. Rakich, Chad W. Hoyt, Chad Fertig, and Daniel J. Blumenthal*, “Silicon Nitride Bus-Coupled Spiral-Ring Resonator for Dual-Mode Locking Temperature Stabilization”, in OFC, Optical Society of America, 2021, paper Th4B.
- Qiancheng Zhao, Mark W. Harrington, Andrei Isichenko, Grant M. Brodnik, Kaikai Liu, Ryan O. Behunin, Peter T. Rakich, Chad W. Hoyt, Chad Fertig, Scott B. Papp, and Daniel J. Blumenthal*, "Laser Frequency Drift Stabilization Using an Integrated Dual-Mode Locking Si3N4 Waveguide Reference Cavity," in Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (2021) (Optical Society of America, 2021), p. STh2B.7
- Qiancheng Zhao, Jiawei Wang, Nitesh Chauhan, Debapam Bose, Naijun Jin, Renan Moreira, Ryan Behunin, Peter Rakich, and Daniel Blumenthal*, “Low-loss D-shape Silicon Nitride Waveguides Using a Dielectric Lift-off Fabrication Process”, in CLEO: Science and Innovations, Optical Society of America, 2020.
- Qiancheng Zhao, M. W. Khan, P. Sadri-Moshkenani, R. Regan, F. Capolino, and O. Boyraz*, "Demonstration of a Plasmo-Thermomechanical Radiation Detector with Si3N4 Waveguide Optical Readout Circuit," in Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics, OSA Technical Digest (online) (Optical Society of America, 2018), paper JW2A.175.
- Qiancheng Zhao, Parinaz Sadri-Moshkenani, Mohammad Wahiduzzaman Khan, Rasul Torun, Imam-Uz Zaman, and Ozdal Boyraz*, "Infrared Detection Using Plasmonically Enhanced Thermomechanically Actuated Nanowire Arrays," in Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics, OSA Technical Digest (Optical Society of America, 2017), paper JTh2A.114.
- Qiancheng Zhao, Mohammad Wahiduzzaman Khan, Parinaz Sadri-Moshkenani, Rasul Torun, Imam-Uz Zaman, Ozdal Boyraz*, "Plasmo-thermomechanical suspended nanowire array detectors for mid-infrared spectrum," Proc. SPIE 10404, Infrared Sensors, Devices, and Applications VII, 104040L (30 August 2017).
CONTACT
Openings
We are looking for self-motivated PhD, master, and undergraduate students to join our team. Postdocs and visiting scholars are also welcome. Candidates will work in integrated photonic devices and systems, including device design and simulation, cleanroom fabrication, lab automation and characterization. Specific research topics will be determined based on the common interests of the candidate and the advisor.
Preferred applicant profile:
- Self-motivated and can-do attitude.
- Has optics, physics, electrical engineering, or related education background.
- Proficiency in MATLAB/Python programming.
- Knowledge of Lumerical/COMSOL or equivalent software is a plus.
Contact Information
Email: zhaoqc AT sustech DOT edu DOT cn
Location: Building 3, Nanshan iPark Chongwen, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China, 518055
Archived News
[2023/05/17] Houling Ji successfully had his dissertation defense.
Dissertation title "Research on The Microcavity Structure of GaP-OI Optical Frequency Comb "
Qiancheng Zhao was invited by Dr. Junqiu Liu to give a presentation at the Institute for Quantum Science and Engineering on April 28, 2022. The presentation title is "Photonic Integrated Optical Reference Cavity".
The video recording can be found on Koushare