All-optical modulation in a CMOS-compatible amorphous silicon-based device

Active silicon photonic devices, which dynamically control the flow of light, have received significant attention for their use in on-chip
optical networks. High-speed active silicon photonic modulators and switches rely on the plasma dispersion effect, where a change in
carrier concentration causes a variation in the refractive index. The necessary electron and hole concentration change can be introduced
either by optical pumping, or by direct electrical injection and depletion. We demonstrate a fast photoinduced absorption effect in low
loss hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) waveguides deposited at a temperature as low as 190°C. Significant modulation (M% 90%)
occurs with a 1 mm-long device. We attribute the enhanced modulation to the significantly larger free-carrier absorption effect of a-Si:H.
The complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) compatible technology of a-Si:H could be considered as a promising candidate to enable an easy back-end integration with standard microelectronics processes.