# Publications

2017
Stern, Brian, Xingchen Ji, Avik Dutt, and Michal Lipson. “Compact narrow-linewidth integrated laser based on a low-loss silicon nitride ring resonator.” Optics Letters 42, no. 21 (2017): 4541-4544. Publisher's Version Abstract
We design and demonstrate a compact, narrow-linewidth integrated laser based on low-loss silicon nitride waveguides coupled to a III-V gain chip. By using a highly confined optical mode, we simultaneously achieve compact bends and ultra-low loss. We leverage the narrowband backreflection of a high-Q microring resonator to act as a cavity output mirror, a single-mode filter, and a propagation delay all in one. This configuration allows the ring to provide feedback and obtain a laser linewidth of 13 kHz with 1.7 mW output power around 1550 nm. This demonstration realizes a compact sub-millimeter silicon nitride laser cavity with a narrow linewidth.
Ji, Xingchen, Felippe AS Barbosa, Samantha P Roberts, Avik Dutt, Jaime Cardenas, Yoshitomo Okawachi, Alex Bryant, Alexander L Gaeta, and Michal Lipson. “Ultra-low-loss on-chip resonators with sub-milliwatt parametric oscillation threshold.” Optica 4, no. 6 (2017): 619. Publisher's Version Abstract
On-chip optical resonators have the promise of revolutionizing numerous fields including metrology and sensing; however, their optical losses have always lagged behind their larger discrete resonator counterparts based on crystalline materials and flowable glass. Silicon nitride (Si3N4) ring resonators open up capabilities for optical routing, frequency comb generation, optical clocks and high precision sensing on an integrated platform. However, simultaneously achieving high quality factor and high confinement in Si3N4 (critical for nonlinear processes for example) remains a challenge. Here, we show that addressing surface roughness enables us to overcome the loss limitations and achieve high-confinement, on-chip ring resonators with a quality factor (Q) of 37 million for a ring with 2.5 {\mu}m width and 67 million for a ring with 10 {\mu}m width. We show a clear systematic path for achieving these high quality factors. Furthermore, we extract the loss limited by the material absorption in our films to be 0.13 dB/m, which corresponds to an absorption limited Q of at least 170 million by comparing two resonators with different degrees of confinement. Our work provides a chip-scale platform for applications such as ultra-low power frequency comb generation, high precision sensing, laser stabilization and sideband resolved optomechanics.
Mohanty, Aseema, Mian Zhang, Avik Dutt, Sven Ramelow, Paulo Nussenzveig, and Michal Lipson. “Quantum Interference between Transverse Spatial Waveguide Modes.” Nature Communications 8 (2017): 14010. Publisher's Version Abstract
Integrated quantum optics has the potential to markedly reduce the footprint and resource requirements of quantum information processing systems, but its practical implementation demands broader utilization of the available degrees of freedom within the optical field. To date, integrated photonic quantum systems have primarily relied on path encoding. However, in the classical regime, the transverse spatial modes of a multi-mode waveguide have been easily manipulated using the waveguide geometry to densely encode information. Here, we demonstrate quantum interference between the transverse spatial modes within a single multi-mode waveguide using quantum circuit-building blocks. This work shows that spatial modes can be controlled to an unprecedented level and have the potential to enable practical and robust quantum information processing.
2016
Dutt, Avik, Chaitanya Joshi, Xingchen Ji, Jaime Cardenas, Yoshitomo Okawachi, Kevin Luke, Alexander L. Gaeta, and Michal Lipson. “On-chip dual comb source for spectroscopy.” arXiv:1611.07673 [physics] (2016). Publisher's Version Abstract
Dual-comb spectroscopy is a powerful technique for real-time, broadband optical sampling of molecular spectra which requires no moving components. Recent developments with microresonator-based platforms have enabled frequency combs at the chip scale. However, the need to precisely match the resonance wavelengths of distinct high-quality-factor microcavities has hindered the development of an on-chip dual comb source. Here, we report the first simultaneous generation of two microresonator combs on the same chip from a single laser. The combs span a broad bandwidth of 51 THz around a wavelength of 1.56 \$\textbackslashmu\$m. We demonstrate low-noise operation of both frequency combs by deterministically tuning into soliton mode-locked states using integrated microheaters, resulting in narrow (\$\textless\$ 10 kHz) microwave beatnotes. We further use one mode-locked comb as a reference to probe the formation dynamics of the other comb, thus introducing a technique to investigate comb evolution without auxiliary lasers or microwave oscillators. We demonstrate broadband high-SNR absorption spectroscopy of dichloromethane spanning 170 nm using the dual comb source over a 20 \$\textbackslashmu\$s acquisition time. Our device paves the way for compact and robust dual-comb spectrometers at nanosecond timescales.
Dutt, Avik, Steven Miller, Kevin Luke, Jaime Cardenas, Alexander L. Gaeta, Paulo Nussenzveig, and Michal Lipson. “Tunable Squeezing Using Coupled Ring Resonators on a Silicon Nitride Chip.” Opt. Lett. 41 (2016): 223. Publisher's Version Abstract
We demonstrate continuous tuning of the squeezing-level generated in a double-ring optical parametric oscillator by externally controlling the coupling condition using electrically controlled integrated microheaters. We accomplish this by utilizing the avoided crossing exhibited by a pair of coupled silicon nitride microring resonators. We directly detect a change in the squeezing level from 0.5 dB in the undercoupled regime to 2 dB in the overcoupled regime, which corresponds to a change in the generated on-chip squeezing factor from 0.9 to 3.9 dB. Such wide tunability in the squeezing level can be harnessed for on-chip quantum-enhanced sensing protocols that require an optimal degree of squeezing.
2015
Dutt, Avik, Kevin Luke, Sasikanth Manipatruni, Alexander L. Gaeta, Paulo Nussenzveig, and Michal Lipson. “On-Chip Optical Squeezing.” Physical Review Applied 3 (2015): 044005. Publisher's Version Abstract
We report the observation of all-optical squeezing in an on-chip monolithically integrated CMOScompatible platform. Our device consists of a low-loss silicon nitride microring optical parametric oscillator (OPO) with a gigahertz cavity linewidth. We measure 1.7 dB (5 dB corrected for losses) of subshot-noise quantum correlations between bright twin beams generated in the microring four-wave-mixing OPO pumped above threshold. This experiment demonstrates a compact, robust, and scalable platform for quantum-optics and quantum-information experiments on chip.
Cardenas, Jaime, Mengjie Yu, Yoshitomo Okawachi, Carl B. Poitras, Ryan K. W. Lau, Avik Dutt, Alexander L. Gaeta, and Michal Lipson. “Optical nonlinearities in high-confinement silicon carbide waveguides.” Optics Letters 40 (2015): 4138-4141. Publisher's Version Abstract
We demonstrate strong nonlinearities of n(2) = 8.6 +/- 1.1 x 10(-15) cm(2) W-1 in single-crystal silicon carbide (SiC) at a wavelength of 2360 nm. We use a high-confinement SiC waveguide fabricated based on a high-temperature smart-cut process. (C) 2015 Optical Society of America
Miller, Steven A., Yoshitomo Okawachi, Sven Ramelow, Kevin Luke, Avik Dutt, Alessandro Farsi, Alexander L. Gaeta, and Michal Lipson. “Tunable frequency combs based on dual microring resonators.” Optics Express 23 (2015): 21527-21540. Publisher's Version Abstract
In order to achieve efficient parametric frequency comb generation in microresonators, external control of coupling between the cavity and the bus waveguide is necessary. However, for passive monolithically integrated structures, the coupling gap is fixed and cannot be externally controlled, making tuning the coupling inherently challenging. We design a dual-cavity coupled microresonator structure in which tuning one ring resonance frequency induces a change in the overall cavity coupling condition. We demonstrate wide extinction tunability with high efficiency by engineering the ring coupling conditions. Additionally, we note a distinct dispersion tunability resulting from coupling two cavities of slightly different path lengths, and present a new method of modal dispersion engineering. Our fabricated devices consist of two coupled high quality factor silicon nitride microresonators, where the extinction ratio of the resonances can be controlled using integrated microheaters. Using this extinction tunability, we optimize comb generation efficiency as well as provide tunability for avoiding higher-order mode-crossings, known for degrading comb generation. The device is able to provide a 110-fold improvement in the comb generation efficiency. Finally, we demonstrate open eye diagrams using low-noise phase-locked comb lines as a wavelength-division multiplexing channel. (C) 2015 Optical Society of America
2013
Luke, Kevin, Avik Dutt, Carl B. Poitras, and Michal Lipson. “Overcoming Si3N4 film stress limitations for high quality factor ring resonators.” Optics Express 21 (2013): 22829-22833. Abstract
Silicon nitride (Si3N4) ring resonators are critical for a variety of photonic devices. However the intrinsically high film stress of silicon nitride has limited both the optical confinement and quality factor (Q) of ring resonators. We show that stress in Si3N4 films can be overcome by introducing mechanical trenches for isolating photonic devices from propagating cracks. We demonstrate a Si3N4 ring resonator with an intrinsic quality factor of 7 million, corresponding to a propagation loss of 4.2 dB/m. This is the highest quality factor reported to date for high confinement Si3N4 ring resonators in the 1550 nm wavelength range. (c) 2013 Optical Society of America