2008 OSA / AOE 2008

SuQ4.pdf
Modelling Photonic Integrated Circuits
usingTDTW
Dominic F.G. Gallagher
Photon Design, 34 Leopold St, Oxford, OX4 1TW, UK
info@photond.com
Abstract: We present the development ofa simulation tool based on the time domain travelling
wave (TDTW) method for the modelling of active and passive photonic integrated circuits.
2008 Optical Society of America
oels codes: 130.0250 Optoelectronics, 220.2560 Propagating methods
1. Introduction
There is an accelerating move to higher levels of integration in photonics, with an awareness that photonic
integrated circuits (PICs) or hybrids will be needed to reduce costs for mass market applications such as FTTH.
Modelling PICs is a much greater challenge than electronic ICs because a PIC simulator must deal with a much
wider range of physical phenomena.
A PIC simulator must be capable of modelling a complete range of passive elements such as straight
waveguides, curves, y-junctions, facets, directional couplers, ring-resonators. In addition active elements will playa
major role in many PICs and so a PIC simulator must be able to models laser diodes, electro-absorption modulators
and semiconductor optical amplifiers.
Most electronic ICs contain binary circuits - a circuit is either on or off. This helps to isolate parts of an
electronic IC making simulation easier. A PIC is an analogue system where even distant elements of the circuit can
interact strongly - for example a 1% reflection can dramatically affect the noise of a laser diode. This makes the
design of an optical IC simulator significantly more challenging. In addition a PIC simulator must be scalable to
potentially very large optical circuits while at the same time retaining a sufficient model of all the interacting
physical phenomena.
2. The TDTW Method
Figure 1: An optical circuit is represented by a
set of mode propagation paths, each of which is
discretised into finite length elements.
(2)
The authors have developed a new tool named PICWave, that we believe meets most of the criteria listed above.
The tool is based on the time domain travelling wave method (TDTW)[1,2]. The algorithm requires the structure to
be described by a finite number of mode propagation paths and each path is discretised into small steps (see Figure
1). Ifam(z,t) is the amplitude ofa propagating mode in time and space, which might be growing or decaying due to
coupling, absorption, gain etc, then we remove the fast varying term to leave a slowly varying envelope Am(z,t):
am(z,t) = Am (z,t)e
i
(f3m
z
-w t ) (1)
This is then solved using a pair of advection equations for the mode amplitude A, B in forward and reverse
direction:
1 aA aA. .
--+-==]K.B+(g-
V
g
at a=
1 aB en
----== jK.A +(g - + FB(N
e)
V
g
at a=
where K, g, 8, Ys are the grating feedback coefficient (for modelling DBRs), mode gain e.g. in an SOA, grating
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2008 OSA / AOE 2008
SuQ4.pdf
detuning, and the group velocity of the mode. The forcing terms F(N) represent optical noise sources present in an
SOA or laser diode, due to spontaneous emission. The equations are solved in the time domain, with time step dt =
vg.dz, implying that the fields propagate exactly one z-step at each time step as shown in figure 2.
Fields propagate one z- I
element at each step dz=vg.dt
distributed feedback
To/from previous "ladder"
Figure 2: showing how the TDTW algorithm propagates fields along a waveguide.
This algorithm brings many immediate benefits to the simulation of an active PIC:
time domain algorithm provides extensive spectral as well as dynamic response
fully bi-directional, taking all reflections in the circuit into account.
Broad free spectral range, simulates many wavelengths simultaneously
efficient: for example a ring resonator that might need twenty hours in an FDTD code, would take just a few
minutes using TDTW.
Stochastic model allows realistic simulation of noise sources.
3. Modelling of a Ring Resonator
We illustrate the efficiency of the model by simulating an optical ring resonator. Many designers are currently using
FDTD for this task so we compare the TDTW method with FDTD. The device is illustrated in figure 3 below.

Dm
...
:,
eou iI'S I
VI ,1:lI
\ I-
'Iiasrssm
..... ---r-
Figure 3: Modeling a 60um diameter ring resonator. The couplers and
bend loss are modeled by EME and these results imported into the
circuit simulator PICWave.
The directional couplers at top and bottom are modelled by an eigenmode expansion (EME) simulator [3][4].
They could be as easily be modelled by for example BPM. EME gives us a wavelength-dependent scattering matrix
for the coupler. In addition we need a bend mode solver to compute the propagation constant and bend loss of the
ring. These numbers are now exported to PicWave. A close up of one resonance of the ring resonator is shown in
Figure 3. This simple circuit has an analytic solution so the figure shows this for comparison as well as the FDTD
result. Despite the fact that the FDTD simulation was done only in 2D it still took 14 hours on a 3GHz Pentium 4
machine to obtain adequate resolution. In comparison the circuit simulator took a few seconds, with a few
additional minutes to obtain the directional coupler model from the EME tool. Although this ring-resonator has a
simple analytical solution and does not really even need a circuit simulator, the circuit simulator is of course
capable of modeling much more complicated circuits efficiently for example with long chains of rings, additional
feedback loops etc.
Modelling an optical regenerator
The TDTW method can readily be extended to active devices and has been extensively used for designing multi
wavelength and tuneable lasers[5]. We illustrate the model's ability to model complex circuits including active
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2008 GSA / AGE 2008
SuQ4.pdf
elements by simulating an optical regenerator. This consists of passive elements (waveguides, y-junctions) and two
SOAs. The regenerator is shown schematically in Figure 4. At the input B on the left is injected a steady optical
signal at wavelength AI. This passes through a Mach Zehnder interferometer and normally exits D after balanced
amplification by the two SOAs. When light is injected at A at a different wavelength then the Mach Zehnder
becomes unbalanced and the input at B is blocked.
PICWave Circuit: Regenerator l
/' 0 I -< X m
- - - -
Figure 4: schematic of a 2R regenerator in
PICWave.
The response of the regenerator is shown in Figure 5 as eye diagrams. On the left is the input data signal,
representing an NRZ bit pattern at 2GHz. Notice the extinction ratio of 5: 1. On the right is the output response. As
well as a wavelength translation, the signal has been amplified 20x and the extinction ratio is substantially
improved. However the SOAs introduce significant noise in this device as can be seen.
q
CQ
o
..--------
.:
/
.::.
i\\",
'..... -,
C"i ... .... ..... ..._..._..
o
-: t I': ," ".
Figure 5: input data (left)
and output response (right)
of the regenerator. Notice
the 20x gain, improved
extinction ratio and the
noise added by the SOAs.
.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 time[ns] .0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 time[ns]
It should be noted that the model provides significant physical detail of the SOA, including both transverse and
longitudinal spatial hole burning and so is able to retain many of the important physical effects.
4. Conclusions
This paper demonstrates how PICWave - a circuit simulator based on the TDTW method - can achieve efficient
scalability to even large optical circuits, while retaining a detailed model of most of the physical phenomena present
in an active photonic integrated circuit.
[1] Zhang L. M. and Carroll 1. E., "Large-signal dynamic model of the DFB laser," IEEE 1. Quantum Electron. 28,604-611 (1992)
[2] Zhang L. M., S. F. Yu, M. C. Nowell, D. D. Marcenac, 1. E. Carroll, and R. G. S. Plumb, "Dynamic analysis of radiation and side-mode
supression in a second-order DFB laser using time-domain large-signal travelling wave model", IEEE 1. Quantum Electron. 30, 1389-1395
(1994)
[3] D.F.G. Gallagher, T.P. Felici, "Eigenmode Expansion Methods for Simulation of Optical Propagation in Photonics - Pros and Cons." Proc.
SPIE, vol 4987, pp.69-82, 2003.
[4] FIMMPROP - see www.photond.com/products/fimmprop.htm.
[5] D.F.G. Gallagher, "Wavelength tunable lasers: time-domain model for SG-DBR lasers," in Optoelectronic Devices, edited by J. Piprek, pp.
151-184. (Springer 2005).
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