DESIGN AND PERFORMANCE OF 2x2 THERMO-OPTIC MODE SWITCH BASED ON SOI PLATFORM

Abstract

Optical switch plays a crucial role in protection switching, cross-connect, and dynamic configuration in next-generation intelligent optical networks. In this paper, we first propose to design a 2x2 thermo-optic switch based on silicon-on-insulator with high switching performance. We then investigate the performance of the proposed mode switch in terms of insertion loss (I.L) and crosstalk (Cr.T) at switch’s outputs. The simulation results demonstrated that this switch can support large bandwidth of 50 nm with I.L ³ -0.7 dB and Cr.T £ -25 dB for both the bar state and the cross state at two inputs. The proposed switch may find potential applications in reconfigurable optical networks.