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JOURNAL OF LIGHTWAVE TECHNOLOGY, VOL. 25, NO.

9, SEPTEMBER 2007 2495

FDTD Analysis of Two-Photon Absorption


and Free-Carrier Absorption in
Si High-Index-Contrast Waveguides
Nobuo Suzuki

Abstract—The two-photon absorption (TPA), the free-carrier and the maximum wavelength channels in a passive optical
absorption (FCA), and the carrier plasma effect play important circuit for wavelength-division multiplexed (WDM) applica-
roles in Si-based photonic devices. These effects have been incorpo- tions. Therefore, adequate attention should be given to these
rated directly into a finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simula-
tor for the first time. To check the validity of the FDTD simulator, nonlinearities in designing photonic devices utilizing Si HIC
it has been applied to the simulation of nonlinear transmission technology.
of an ultrashort optical pulse in a short Si high-index-contrast The optical nonlinearities in Si waveguides have been an-
waveguide. The results are consistent with those shown in the alyzed extensively by nonlinear equations for the pulse en-
literature. The cause of the slight negative slope transmission has velope or coupled-mode equations [7], [10]–[13], [15]–[22].
been explained as follows. Since the TPA-induced FCA makes
the pulse-shape asymmetric, a pulse with a higher optical input The optical-limiting behavior in a long (> 1 mm) Si HIC
intensity tends to have a longer tail. Therefore, a stronger optical waveguide was shown to be predominantly caused by TPA [10],
pulse is subject to FCA for a longer period, resulting in the [11]. In a shorter (< 1 mm) waveguide with higher saturation
negative differential transmission. intensity, on the other hand, it was shown that both TPA and
Index Terms—Finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) methods, TPA-induced FCA contribute to the saturation [7], [8]. The
nonlinear optics, optical pulses, optical waveguides, silicon. negative differential transmittance has been observed only in
the latter case. Although the negative slope was reproduced
I. I NTRODUCTION by calculation, utilizing a nonlinear equation for the pulse
envelope [7], the physical origin has not been clearly explained

I N RECENT years, Si photonics has attracted a great deal


of attention as a CMOS-compatible platform technology
for optical communication and optical interconnection [1]–[6].
[7], [8]. The effects of TPA-induced FCA on the ultrashort
optical pulses have also been discussed in [12] and [16].
Such an approach is useful for analyzing optical nonlinearity
Strong light confinement in a submicrometer-size Si high- in a single waveguide. When the optical nonlinearity in a more
index-contrast (HIC) waveguide (or photonic-wire waveguide) complicated photonic device, such as a microring resonator and
allows small radius bending without loss and high-density an MMI coupler, is concerned, however, simulation utilizing the
integration of photonic devices. Many types of compact passive finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) is more versatile. The
components, such as arrayed-waveguide gratings, multimode- FDTD can deal with optical nonlinearities [23]–[28], such as
interference (MMI) couplers, lattice filters, and microring res- χ(2) , χ(3) , Kerr effect, and Raman nonlinearity, as well as the
onators have been demonstrated. New kinds of Si-based lasers, various material models described by multilevel-rate equations
optical amplifiers, optical modulators, optical switches, and or Bloch equations [28]–[34]. TPA may be included in the
photodiodes have been investigated extensively. FDTD as a part of χ(3) . To the best of the author’s knowledge,
A small cross section of Si HIC waveguides leads to a high however, FCA has not yet been incorporated directly into the
optical intensity, which causes optical nonlinearities such as FDTD simulator.
the two-photon absorption (TPA), Kerr effect, the TPA-induced In this paper, TPA, FCA, and the carrier plasma effect have
free-carrier absorption (FCA), and the carrier plasma effect. been incorporated into the FDTD simulator for Si photonics
For example, optical-limiter behavior with spectral broadening applications. In Section II, a simple algorithm to include the
[7]–[11] was reported for ultrashort optical pulses in Si-based nonlinear absorptions in FDTD is proposed. To check the
waveguides. Rieger et al. [7] and Cowan et al. [8] observed even validity of the FDTD simulator, it is applied to the calculation
a slight negative differential transmittance. The nonlinearity can of nonlinear optical-pulse propagation in a Si HIC waveguide in
be applied to all-optical switches and wavelength converters Section III. The results were consistent with those in the litera-
[12]–[18]. On the other hand, the nonlinear absorption and ture [7], [8]. The cause of the negative differential transmission
the wavelength mixing limit the maximum input optical power observed in short Si HIC waveguides has been clarified.

Manuscript received January 11, 2007; revised May 9, 2007. II. C ALCULATION M ODEL
The author is with the Corporate R&D Center, Toshiba Corporation,
Kawasaki 212-8582, Japan (e-mail: nob.suzuki@toshiba.co.jp). A. Basic Procedure of Conventional FDTD
Color versions of one or more of the figures in this paper are available online
at http://ieeexplore.ieee.org. Here, we consider isotropic materials with relative perme-
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/JLT.2007.903298 ability µ = 1. In FDTD, the magnetic field H is defined at

0733-8724/$25.00 © 2007 IEEE


2496 JOURNAL OF LIGHTWAVE TECHNOLOGY, VOL. 25, NO. 9, SEPTEMBER 2007

t = (n + 1/2)∆t, whereas the electric field E, the electric susceptibility can be derived as
displacement D, and the polarization P are defined at t = n∆t.
One calculation time step of the FDTD consists of the following (n+1/2) 2τKerr − ∆t (n−1/2) 2ε2 ∆t
χKerr = χKerr + |E (n) |2
two procedures. 2τKerr + ∆t 2τKerr + ∆t
1) First, H (n+1/2) is calculated from H (n−1/2) and E (n) , (8a)
and then, D (n+1) is calculated from H (n+1/2) and D (n) , (n+3/2)
χKerr
(n+1/2)
+ χKerr
(n+1)
utilizing the Maxwell equations χKerr =
2
2τKerr ε2 ∆t
∂H ∂D = χ(n+1/2) + |E (n+1) |2
−µ0 = ∇ × E, =∇×H (1) 2τKerr + ∆t 2τKerr + ∆t
∂t ∂t
(8b)
where µ0 is the permeability of the vacuum.
2) Then, E (n+1) is calculated from D (n+1) and P (n+1) , where χKerr is defined at t = (n + 1/2)∆t, whereas χKerr
utilizing the constitutive equation is defined at t = n∆t. When τKerr is sufficiently small, the
change in refractive index due to the Kerr effect is given by [26]
and [27]
D = ε0 E + P (2)
∆n = n2 |E|2 = n2 I (9)
where ε0 is the permittivity of the vacuum. Many kinds
of polarization models can be utilized depending on where the optical intensity I is expressed as
the medium. As an example, we consider, here, the c0 ε0 n0
nondispersive polarization ε0 χ∞ E, Lorentz dispersion I= |E|2 (10)
2
P L , Drude dispersion P D , Raman nonlinearity P R =
ε0 χR E, and Kerr effect P Kerr = ε0 χKerr E and the relation between ε2 and the Kerr coefficients n2
and n2 is
P = ε0 χ∞ E + P L + P D + P R + P Kerr . (3)
ε2 = 2n0 n2 = c0 ε0 n20 n2 . (11)

(n+1) The electric field and the Kerr susceptibility can be easily
In the time domain, the Lorentz polarization PL , the
(n+1) calculated from the known variables by iteration, utilizing the
Drude polarization PD , and the Raman susceptibility following equation [23], [25]–[27]:
(n+1)
χR can be calculated from the known variables utilizing
[27], [28]  (n+1)
D
E (n+1)
=  
(n+1) (n+1)
∂ 2 PL ∂PL ε 0 1 + χ∞ + χ R + χKerr (E (n+1) )
2
+ γL + ωL2 PL = ε0 χL ωL2 E (4) (12)
∂t ∂t
where
∂ 2 PD ∂PD
− γD 2
= ε0 ω P E (5)  (n+1)
(n+1) (n+1)
∂t2 ∂t D = D(n+1) − PL − PD . (13)

∂ 2 χR ∂χR
+ γR 2
+ ωR 2
χR = ε R ω R |E|2 (6)
∂t2 ∂t B. Polarizations Due to Carrier Effects in Si

where χL , γL , and ωL are the susceptibility, the damping rate, Here, we add the polarizations due to the carrier plasma
and the resonant angular frequency, respectively, of the Lorentz effect, the background absorption, FCA, and TPA to (3) for
model; γD and ωp are the damping rate and the plasma angular Si photonics applications
frequency, respectively, of the Drude model; and εR , γR , and
ωR are the permittivity, the damping factor, and the resonant P = ε0 χ∞ E + P L + P D + P R + P Kerr
angular frequency, respectively, of the Raman model. + P plsm + P bg + P FCA + P TPA . (14)
The Kerr susceptibility χKerr satisfies [24], [28]
Change in the optical intensity due to TPA is represented by
∂χKerr χKerr 1
+ = ε2 |E|2 (7) dI
∂t τKerr τKerr = −βTPA I 2 (15)
dz
where ε2 is the Kerr permittivity, and τKerr is the response where βTPA is the TPA coefficient. As in the case of the
time. From (7), the difference equations to update the Kerr Kerr effect, the nonlinear polarization due to TPA can be written
SUZUKI: FDTD ANALYSIS OF TPA AND FCA IN Si HIGH-INDEX-CONTRAST WAVEGUIDES 2497

as P TPA = ε0 χTPA E, where The refractive-index change due to the plasma effect in Si is
given by [35]
c0 n0 βTPA c2 ε0 n20 βTPA
χTPA = i I=− 0 |E|2 (16) 
ω 2iω ∆nPlasma = −8.8 × 10−22 Ne
is the nonlinear susceptibility due to TPA. With the substitution 
(n+1)
− 8.5 × 10−18 Nh0.8 (λ/1.55)2 (23)
of iω by −∂/∂t, the time-domain equation to update χTPA
can be derived as where the units of the carrier densities and the wavelength λ are
c20 ε0 n20 βTPA ∆t (n+1/2) 2 in inverse cubic centimeter and in micrometers, respectively.
(n+1) (n)
χTPA = χTPA − |E |
2
∼ (n) c2 ε0 n20 βTPA ∆t C. Inclusion of Carrier Effects in FDTD
= χTPA − 0
4 Now, (2) can be rewritten as
 
× |E (n+1) |2 + |E (n) |2 . (17)  
D= PL + PD + ε0 E ε∞ + χR + χKerr + 2n0 ∆nplsm
(n+1)
Since χTPA depends on the unknown variable |E (n+1) |2 , L

(n+1)
iteration is required to determine χTPA and E (n+1) self- c0 n0 (α0 + σFCA Nf ) c20 ε0 n20 βTPA
− − |E| .
2
(24)
consistently. iω 2iω
Change in the free carrier density Nf caused by TPA can be
expressed by the following rate equation: In mediums without absorption, the electric field can be calcu-
  lated by (12). In the absorptive medium, however, it is difficult
dNf 1 dI Nf to solve (24) directly because of iω in the denominator. To
= − −
dt 2ω dz τr cope with this difficulty, the author proposes to utilize the time
differential form of (24). Upon multiplying iω and substituting
βTPA 2 Nf
= I − iω by −∂/∂t, (24) yields
2ω τr
c20 ε20 n20 βTPA Nf ∂D  ∂PL ∂PD ∂E ∂(χR E)
= |E|4 − (18) = + + ε0 ε∞ + ε0
8ω τr ∂t ∂t ∂t ∂t ∂t
L

where τr is the carrier lifetime. The difference equation corre- ∂(χKerr E) ∂ (∆nplasma (Nf )E)
+ ε0 + 2ε0 n0
sponding to (18) is ∂t ∂t
c20 ε20 n20 βTPA
2τr − ∆t (n−1/2) + c0 ε0 n0 [α0 + σFCA Nf ]E + |E|2 E.
Nf
(n+1/2)
= N 2
2τr + ∆t f (25)
τr ∆t c20 ε20 n20 βTPA (n) 4
+ |E | . (19) From (25), we can establish the resulting difference equation to
2τr + ∆t 4ω update E (n+1) as
(n+1/2)
Note that Nf can be calculated from the known variable,  
E (n) . Here, the electron density Ne and the hole density Nh are (n+1) g2 (E (n+1) ) (n) D (n+1) − D (n)
E = E + (26)
identical to Nf , for simplicity. If necessary, however, we can g1 (E (n+1) ) ε0 g1 (E (n+1) )
deal with Ne and Nh independently. Upon replacing (18) and
(19) by a proper carrier model (injection or gate control), we where
can apply this model for the simulation of optical modulators. (n+1) (n+1)
The free carriers generated by TPA cause the FCA, which is g1 (E (n+1) ) = ε∞ + χR + χKerr (E (n+1) )
represented by + 2n0 ∆nplasma (E (n+1) )
 
(n+1/2)
dI c0 n0 α0 + σFCA Nf ∆t
= −[σFCAe Ne + σFCAh Nh ]I = −σFCA Nf I (20) +
dz 2 
where σFCAe and σFCAh are the cross sections for free-electron c20 ε0 n20 βTPA ∆t |E (n+1) |2 + |E (n) |2
+
absorption and for free-hole absorption, respectively. The polar- 8
ization due to FCA is expressed as (27a)
(n) (n)
g2 (E (n+1) ) = ε∞ + χR + χKerr + 2n0 ∆nplasma (E (n) )
c0 ε0 n0 σFCA Nf  
PFCA = iε0 εiFCA E = − E. (21) c0 n0 α0 + σFCA Nf
(n+1/2)
∆t


The free carriers also cause a refractive-index change, 2 
∆nplasma (Nf ). The relevant polarization is expressed as c20 ε0 n20 βTPA ∆t |E (n+1) |2 + |E (n) |2
− .
8
PPlasma = ε0 εrPlasma E = ε0 2n0 ∆nPlasma (Nf )E. (22) (27b)
2498 JOURNAL OF LIGHTWAVE TECHNOLOGY, VOL. 25, NO. 9, SEPTEMBER 2007

Fig. 1. Assumed waveguide structure and electric-field amplitude |Ey | of an


optical pulse (Iin = 56 pJ) at 400 fs after the pulse-peak incidence. Calculation
region is surrounded by PML. The vertical axis is enlarged by ten times.

Equation (26) can be easily solved by iteration, just as in the


case of (12). The maximum iteration cycle was six in the 2-D
calculation described in the next section.

III. S IMULATION OF S UBPICOSECOND O PTICAL -P ULSE


P ROPAGATION IN Si HIC W AVEGUIDE Fig. 2. Calculated output pulse energy from the waveguide as functions of
the input pulse energy. The optical-limiting behavior with a slight negative
A. Calculation differential transmission is evident.

To check the validity of the FDTD simulator, it was applied


to the simulation of the short optical-pulse propagation in a
Si HIC waveguide, which is the most straightforward appli-
cation and has been extensively analyzed, utilizing nonlinear
equations for the pulse envelope [7], [10]–[13], [15]–[22]. Here,
we consider a short waveguide, where the negative differential
transmittance was observed [7], [8]. Following Cowan et al.
[8], the Si HIC waveguide (200 nm(h) × 425 nm(w)) was
assumed to be formed on a SiO2 layer and surrounded by air.
The wavelength and the pulsewidth of the Gaussian optical
pulse (TE mode) were assumed to be λ = 1.49 µm and 200 fs
(full-width at half maximum), respectively. The refractive index
of Si was assumed to be 3.481 at λ = 1.49 µm. For 2-D
calculation, this structure was reduced to a slab waveguide
shown in Fig. 1, consisting of Si core layer (neff = 3.039)
Fig. 3. Comparison of the transmittances for a 50-µm Si HIC waveguide
sandwiched by the air and SiO2 (n = 1.5). The calculation calculated with and without including FCA and the carrier plasma effect.
region (1.6 µm × 100.4 µm) was terminated by Gedney’s The optical-limiting characteristic appears only when FCA is taken into
perfectly matched layer (PML) [36]. The mesh size and the consideration.
time step of the FDTD were assumed to be 40 nm and 80 as,
respectively. The calculation was carried out with a standard pulse energy becomes almost constant for higher input inten-
personal computer. sity, and a slight negative differential transmission is evident.
The Kerr coefficient and the TPA coefficient of Si were In the case of the 100-µm waveguide, the output pulse energy
reported to be n2 = 4.3–14.5 × 10−18 m2 /W and βTPA = (Iout ) was saturated at around 5 pJ when the input pulse energy
0.4–0.9 cm/GW, respectively [7], [9], [10], [14], [37], [38]. (Iin ) surpasses 15 pJ, corresponding to the peak intensity of
The values assumed in this calculation were n2 = 7 × about 80 GW/cm2 (∼15 pJ/200 fs/0.09 µm2 ). The saturation
10−18 m2 /W (ε2 = 1.72 × 10−19 m2 /V2 ), τKerr = 0, βTPA = intensity is smaller for a longer waveguide.
0.9 cm/GW, and τr = 0.8 ns. The FCA cross sections of Si are Fig. 3 compares the transmittance of a Si HIC waveguide
given by [35] (L = 50 µm) when FCA and/or the carrier plasma effect were
ignored. The optical-limiter characteristic appears only when
σFCAe = 8.5 × 10−18 [cm2 ] × (λ/1.55)2 (28a) both TPA and FCA are considered as described in [7] and [8].
σFCAh = 6.0 × 10−18 [cm2 ] × (λ/1.55)2 (28b) The carrier plasma effect makes a minor contribution to
the transmittance. Fig. 4 shows the waveform change in the
where the unit of λ is in micrometers. The refractive-index waveguide for Iin = 29 pJ with (solid lines) and without
change due to the carrier plasma effect was calculated by (dashed lines) FCA. Two characteristics of FCA are evident:
(23). Since the waveguide is rather short, dispersion can be 1) the pulse height decreases rapidly near the input edge of the
ignored [10]. waveguide and 2) since the latter part of the pulse is absorbed
by FCA, the pulse-peak position is advanced. Fig. 5 shows
the input-pulse-energy dependence of the calculated power
B. Results and Discussions
spectra at L = 50 µm. By increasing the input pulse energy,
Fig. 2 shows the calculated output pulse energy from the spectra are broadened, multipeaked, and blue-shifted due to the
waveguide as functions of the input pulse energy. The output plasma effect. When the plasma effect is not taken into account,
SUZUKI: FDTD ANALYSIS OF TPA AND FCA IN Si HIGH-INDEX-CONTRAST WAVEGUIDES 2499

Fig. 4. Impact of FCA on the transmitted pulse waveform. The solid and
dotted curves show the waveforms calculated with and without including FCA.
The input pulse energy was 29 pJ. The latter part of the pulse is absorbed by
FCA, which is remarkable near the input edge of the waveguide. The pulse-peak Fig. 7. Temporal changes of optical power P and carrier density Nf at L =
position is advanced due to FCA. 80 µm. The dashed lines and the solid lines denote Iin = 29 pJ and Iin =
56 pJ, respectively. Although the pulse energy and the carrier density become
independent of the input pulse energy as the pulse propagates farther, the pulse-
peak position and the rise timing of Nf are advanced for higher Iin . A pulse
with higher Iin has a longer tail and suffers from FCA for a longer period.
The pulse energy (Iout = 6.6 pJ) for Iin = 56 pJ is slightly smaller than that
(Iout = 6.7 pJ) for Iin = 29 pJ, in spite of a higher peak intensity.

carrier density generated by the TPA at the input edge is in


2
proportion to Iin , and hence, a stronger pulse is subject to
stronger absorption due to both TPA and FCA. Therefore,
the pulse energy and the carrier density that is far from the
input edge tend to be independent of the input pulse energy.
However, the pulse shape is not identical. The pulse shape and
the carrier density at L = 80 µm are compared in Fig. 7 for
Iin = 29 pJ (dashed lines) and Iin = 56 pJ (solid lines). Since
the carrier lifetime (τr ) is much longer than the pulsewidth,
Fig. 5. Input-pulse-energy dependence of the calculated power spectra for
the carrier density increases in proportion to the time integral
a 50-µm Si HIC waveguide. Each spectrum was normalized at the peak. By of the pulse waveform as pointed out by Boyraz et al. [12].
increasing the input pulse energy, spectra are broadened, multipeaked, and Since the influence of TPA that near the input edge is much
blue-shifted.
stronger for a pulse with a higher Iin , the peak shift to the
front edge is larger, and the influence of FCA begins earlier
for higher Iin . Therefore, the pulse with a higher Iin tends to
have a longer tail and is subject to FCA for a longer period
even after the traveling pulse energy and the carrier density
become almost independent of the input pulse energy. This
causes a slight negative differential transmittance. In the case
of Fig. 7, the pulse energy (Iout = 6.6 pJ) for Iin = 56 pJ is
slightly smaller than that (Iout = 6.7 pJ) for Iin = 29 pJ, in
spite of a higher peak intensity. Fig. 8(a) and (b) shows the
pulsewidth dependence of the input–output characteristics in
terms of the pulse energy and the peak pulse intensity at the
mode peak, respectively, for a 50-µm Si HIC waveguide. The
Fig. 6. Spatial distribution of carriers after the pulse has passed for Iin = negative slope is evident only in the plot for the pulse energy.
9.8, 19, 29, and 56 pJ. Near the input edge, the free carrier density is higher
for stronger optical input. The carrier density far from the input edge, however,
Thus, the waveform change caused by TPA-induced FCA in the
tends to be independent of the input pulse energy. waveguide is responsible for the negative slope. The pulsewidth
dependence in Fig. 8(b) is weaker than that in Fig. 8(a), because
the spectra are single-peaked and the center wavelength does TPA depends on the intensity, not on the pulse energy. A smaller
not shift. These characteristics are consistent with the experi- saturation intensity for a longer pulse is attributed to a longer
mental and calculated results reported in the literature [7]–[22]. interaction time with FCA.
Now, let us consider the cause of the negative differential
transmittance, which has not been explained clearly in the
IV. C ONCLUSION
previous work [7], [8]. Fig. 6 shows the input-pulse-energy
dependence of the carrier distribution along the center of the A simple approach to include nondispersive absorption in
waveguide after the pulse was passed. According to (18), the the FDTD calculation was proposed. With this algorithm, TPA,
2500 JOURNAL OF LIGHTWAVE TECHNOLOGY, VOL. 25, NO. 9, SEPTEMBER 2007

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vol. 46, no. 3, pp. 334–340, Mar. 1998. Nobuo Suzuki was born in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, in January 1956. He
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ond optical gating in nonlinear optical waveguide utilizing intersubband University of Tokyo, Tokyo, in 1978, 1980, and 1983, respectively.
transition in AlGaN/GaN quantum wells,” IEICE Trans. Electron., Since 1983, he has been with the Research and Development Center, Toshiba
vol. E83-C, no. 6, pp. 981–988, Jun. 2000. Corporation, Kawasaki, where he has been engaged in research on semicon-
[31] N. Suzuki, “Simulation of ultrafast cross-gain modulation in optically- ductor optoelectronic devices (OEICs, InGaAs/InGaAsP/InP avalanche photo-
pumped GaN/AlN intersubband optical amplifiers,” Jpn. J. Appl. Phys., diodes, high-speed strained multiquantum-well semiconductor lasers, tunable
vol. 42, no. 9A, pp. 5607–5612, Sep. 2003. semiconductor lasers, electroabsorption modulators, and ultrafast all-optical
[32] N. Suzuki, N. Iizuka, and K. Kaneko, “Simulation of ultrafast GaN/AlN switches utilizing intersubband transition in GaN/AlN MQWs) for optical
intersubband optical switches,” IEICE Trans. Electron., vol. E88-C, no. 3, communication systems. From 2002 to 2003, he was a Guest Professor at
pp. 342–348, Mar. 2005. the Research Center for Integrated Quantum Electronics, Hokkaido University,
[33] M. Bahl, N. C. Panoiu, and R. M. Osgood, Jr., “Modeling ultrashort field Sapporo. His present interests are semiconductor-integrated optoelectronic
dynamics in surface emitting lasers by using finite-difference time-domain devices, optical interconnects, and Si photonics and their modeling.
method,” IEEE J. Quantum Electron., vol. 41, no. 10, pp. 1244–1252, Dr. Suzuki is a member of the Institute of Electronics, Information, and
Oct. 2005. Communication Engineers and the Japan Society of Applied Physics.

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