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Title: Optical Coupler Design and Experimental Demonstration for 2.5D/3D Heterogeneous Integrated Electronics
Committee:
Dr. Bakir, Advisor
Dr. Gaylord, Co-Advisor
Dr. Ralph, Chair
Dr. Klein
Abstract:
The objective of the proposed research is to theoretically design and experimentally demonstrate optical couplers for 2.5D/3D heterogeneous integrated electronics. In the first part, a new concept, the "equivalent index slab (EIS)" method, is proposed to extend the application of the rigorous coupled-wave analysis (RCWA) to the rectangular grating diffraction phenomena involving surface waves. The RCWA-EIS method can be applied to optimize rectangular grating couplers with arbitrary profiles and to analyze the effects of angular misalignments on the coupling efficiency. In the second part, a fundamentally new coupling structure, the grating-assisted-cylindrical-resonant-cavities (GARC) interlayer coupler, is introduced. Based on cylindrical resonant cavities, the GARC couplers exhibit wider spectral bandwidth and higher coupling efficiency, which are promising alternatives to the conventional couplers.