Widely Tunable Soliton Microcomb Chip

ongoing

The generation of optical frequency combs through nonlinear optical processes is an enabling technology for a wide range of applications. These combs, consisting of equally spaced coherent light frequencies, are highly valued in applications such as communications, LiDAR, and microwave photonics. The first generation of combs, developed using mode-locked lasers, expanded their spectrum through nonlinear media to create broadband frequency combs. Initially, these systems relied on bulky free-space optical components. Efforts to reduce the size, weight, and power (SWaP) of these systems led to the development of microcomb technology. Dissipative Kerr soliton (DKS) microcombs—generated via nonlinear optical processes in microresonators—have emerged as a more compact, scalable, chip-based alternative, offering higher repetition rates, lower power consumption, and simplified broadband spectrum generation and attracting significant market interest. Despite their advantages, DKS microcombs face several bottlenecks, including limited tunability, sensitivity, and poor conversion efficiency. The ELASTIC project aims to address these issues by leveraging the high thermo-optic coefficient and nonlinearity of the AlGaAsOI platform combined with a novel pump scheme. This approach will enable low-power, highly tunable, and insensitive chip-scale comb systems for emerging applications like massively parallel frequency-modulated continuous-wave LiDAR and wavelength-division multiplexing systems.