Multipurpose silicon photonics signal processor core

TLDR

Integrated photonics offers new scaling laws and architectural choices, yet application‑specific designs require many iterations; a programmable photonic processor inspired by FPGA uses a two‑dimensional waveguide mesh that can be programmed to realize diverse functions. The study demonstrates a reconfigurable waveguide‑mesh photonic processor fabricated in silicon. The processor employs a two‑dimensional photonic waveguide mesh that can be programmed to implement various functions. The silicon mesh implements more than 20 distinct functions using only seven hexagonal cells, enabling applications from communications to quantum information and marking a significant advance toward programmable photonic systems.

Abstract

Abstract Integrated photonics changes the scaling laws of information and communication systems offering architectural choices that combine photonics with electronics to optimize performance, power, footprint, and cost. Application-specific photonic integrated circuits, where particular circuits/chips are designed to optimally perform particular functionalities, require a considerable number of design and fabrication iterations leading to long development times. A different approach inspired by electronic Field Programmable Gate Arrays is the programmable photonic processor, where a common hardware implemented by a two-dimensional photonic waveguide mesh realizes different functionalities through programming. Here, we report the demonstration of such reconfigurable waveguide mesh in silicon. We demonstrate over 20 different functionalities with a simple seven hexagonal cell structure, which can be applied to different fields including communications, chemical and biomedical sensing, signal processing, multiprocessor networks, and quantum information systems. Our work is an important step toward this paradigm.