Photonic integration of lithium niobate micro-ring resonators onto silicon nitride waveguide chips by transfer-printing

Abstract

The heterogeneous integration of pre-fabricated lithium niobate photonic waveguide devices onto a silicon nitride waveguide platform via a transfer-printing approach has been demonstrated for the first time. A fabrication process was developed to make free-standing lithium niobate membrane devices compatible with back-end integration onto photonic integrated circuits. Micro-ring resonators in membrane format were lithographically defined by using laser direct writing and plasma dry etching. The lithium niobate micro-ring resonators were then transferred from their host substrate and released onto a silicon nitride waveguide chip. An all-pass ring resonator transmission spectrum was obtained in the 1.5 µm to 1.6 µm wavelength range, with a measured loaded Q-factor larger than 3.2 × 10 4 .