Optical Input / Output

Considerations for
Photonic Integrated
Circuit Coupling &
Packaging
Dan Neugroschl
Chiral Photonics, Inc.
Pine Brook, New Jersey USA

T. J. Seok, et. al., "High Density Optical Packaging of High Radix Silicon
Photonic Switches," in Optical Fiber Communication Conference
Postdeadline Papers, OSA Technical Digest (online) (Optical Society of
America, 2017), paper Th5D.7.

1  September 2016 Photonics Summit and Workshop 2017 ♦ 06 Sep 2017 ♦ San Jose, CA, USA
 Agenda
1. Why Should I Care about Probing & Packaging?
➢ When should I care about probing & packaging?
2. What are my Probing/Package Requirements?
➢ Self assessment for out- or in-sourcing
3. Optical I/O Considerations & Options
4. Packaging Service Providers and Exemplary
Services

2  September 2016
 Bias Disclosure: Surface Coupling
Surface Coupling Edge Coupling

Vertical Grating Couplers Waveguide Facet

3  September 2016
 Why Should I Care about Probing & Packaging?
1. Proper testing of your PIC demands it
2. May want to get off lab bench/probe station and test in real world
➢ Even if not your initial goal

3. 80:20 electronic vs. 20:80 photonic chip:package costs (?)

4. Achilles’ Heel: [Definition: Weakness in spite of overall strength, leading to downfall]

➢ “Can you package my 2 μm MFD channels on 127 μm pitch?”
➢ Packaging can be a strong asset and need not be painful

➢ Start discussing it when you purchase your design software

• Perhaps as a prerequisite – can software model optical coupling?
• Certainly at earliest stage of design

4  September 2016
 Basic Probing / Packaging Requirements
Map out your testing:
1. How will I systematically and granularly verify my design?
• Electrical
• Optical
➢ Independently verify electrical and optical, e.g. pure optical
alignment / measurements uncomplicated by detector or
modulator verification
2. Do you want to do wafer-level probing?
➢ Consider addition of taps and vertical grating couplers (VGCs)
➢ Erasable VGCs: M. Milosevic, "Towards autonomous testing of photonic
integrated circuits," Proc. SPIE 10108, Silicon Photonics XII, 1010817
(2017/02/20)
5  September 2016
 Electrical, Layout and Fixturing Considerations
• Electrical design • Test fixturing that considers test
• Single-end vs differential RF needs, e.g. compatible connectors
• Minimize RF line lengths
• Electrical I/O design: Wire bonds vs. Flip-chip (solder bump, Cu pillar)
• Copper pillar offers: Higher I/O density, improved electromigration resistance,
improved thermal conductivity, simplified underbump metallization and
underfill
• Often a progression of designs
• Die bonding electrical needs, e.g. grounding
• Layout considerations
• Die Size: L x W x H
• Minimize conflicts between electrical and optical I/O
• Keep die edges unmixed: electrical OR optical
• Use opposite edges for optical when 2 edges are needed
• Clearance between optical and electrical probe “pads” for simultaneous
probing
6  September 2016
 Thermal Management & Application-Specific Considerations

• Thermal Design
• Especially relevant when PIC contains: laser, resonators, AWGs, WDM
components, amplifiers or components that generate heat or are temperature-
sensitive
• Thermal modeling
• Thermoelectic cooler (TEC) and feedback/control
• On-chip temperature measurement
• Thermistors with feedback to TEC
• Die bonding requirements

• Application-specific packaging needs

• Package design and environmental needs: form factor / testing:
• Testing requirements: Telcordia to biocompatible (e.g. sterilizable) to
hermiticity to vacuum-compatible to cryogenic, etc.

7  September 2016
 Optical Considerations
• Spectral range / fiber needs • Optical performance expectations
• Number of channels (transmission losses, polarization and
• Polarization sensitivity: PM channels temperature sensitivity)
• Edge vs. surface coupling
• Surface coupling may be desirable for wafer level testing even when edge
coupling packaged device
• Mode Field Diameter (Spot Size) at die interface: waveguide facet or VGC
• VGC diffraction angle
• Experimentally verified mode field dimensions preferred
• Pigtailed vs. pluggable
• Active alignment design / equipment needs
• Alignment channels / taps / fiducials
• On-chip detector / source
• Package materials needs – stability
• Hermiticity needs
• Package process sequence
8  September 2016
 PIC Optical Coupling: Edge vs. Surface
➢ Die to fiber: Submicron to ~ 10 μm spot size (1550 nm) conversion needed
Edge Vertical Grating
Coupler Coupler (VGC)

30 nm (1 dB) typ.
Bandwidth 100s of nm
Improving: 75 (1 dB) – 130 nm (3 dB)1
Insertion Loss Deceptive 3-4 dB typ.
2 dB typ.
Fiber-to-die Improving: < 1.5 dB1
1-2 µm typ. [0.1-0.2 µm]
Mode Field Diameter [Alignment Tolerances] 6-10 µm typ. [0.6 - 1 µm]
(Inverted taper)
Arrays / # of Channels 1-dimensional / 10s 2-dimensional / 100s
Edge preparation Yes: etch (ledge), polish No (also enhanced stability)
Wafer-level Probing (KGD, Foundry vs. BE) No Yes
Polarization Maintaining Yes No 2D PM fiber couplers yet
Polarization Handling On-chip PM splitters Polarization diversity VGCs (IL penalty)
1Wade, M.T. et.al. "75% efficient wide bandwidth grating couplers in a 45 nm microelectronics CMOS process," in Optical Interconnects Conference (OI),
2015 IEEE , pp.46-47, 20-22 April 2015: 78nm 1-dB bandwidth fabricated in a 45nm commercially available microelectronics SOI CMOS process.

Other considerations include: IP, Overall package design, thermal management…..

9  September 2016
 Optical Coupling Technologies Fiber and Fiber Arrays
National Chung Hsing U., Taiwan
Free Space Optics V-Groove Arrays
Lensed Fiber
Lens

High NA fiber Multicore Fiber

Pitch Reducing Optical Fiber Array (PROFA)

Micro-Optic for
Arrayed Lenses Planar Fiber Coupling (TIR)
Tyndall National Institute Planar Fiber Coupling (TIR)
Tyndall National Institute
Interposers
Interposer Chip
PLC Connections Passive Alignment
Wafer-level
Adiabatic Coupling
IBM Silicon Nanophotonic Packaging
“PhotonicBump”

Photonic Wire Bonds Teramount Ltd.

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
www.plcconnections.com
EU FP7 Initiative PHASTFlex
10  September 2016
 PhotonicPlug
• Provide passively aligned optical I/O via standard pick & place
equipment: +/- 6 µm placement accuracy
• PhotonicBump via wafer-level process
• PhotonicPlug via standard pick & place equipment
• Fiber array: SM, 250 µm spacing
• Performance (standard flip chip equipment, 1500 UPM): < 0.5 dB coupling loss
• Introduction: 2H 2018 (working with customers now)

LETI’s silicon photonics chip with PhotonicPlug on LETI’s silicon

PhotonicBumps photonics wafer
11  September 2016
 “Vanishing Core” Fiber Concept
Vanishing Core

Secondary Core
n3
n2 Tailored NA Waveguide
Standard NA
n1
(MFD ≈ 10 µm)

Fiber
Cladding (Ø ≈ 125 µm)

• Dual, concentric core design and choice of glass refractive indices (n1, n2) enable device to be
compatible with standard fibers (on left).
• Light is confined within secondary core, tailored (n2, n3) to be compatible with reduced mode field
diameter (MFD) of coupled to waveguide
• The central core (n1) effectively “vanishes” relative to light traveling through tapered region.

12  September 2016
 “Vanishing Core” Fiber Concept
Vanishing Core

Secondary Core
n3
n2 Tailored NA Waveguide
Standard NA
n1
(MFD ≈ 10 µm)

Fiber
Cladding (Ø ≈ 125 µm)
Endface for
PM coupling

n1 - n2 < n2 - n3 - reduced MFD

n1 - n2 > n2 - n3 - expanded MFD
n1 - n2 = n2 - n3 - preserved MFD
Configurable output geometry for polarization
control and mode shape adaptation
V.I. Kopp and A.Z. Genack, Nature Photonics 5, 470 (2011)
13  September 2016
 Pitch Reducing Optical Fiber Array (PROFA)
Common cladding (n3)
“Vanishing” inner cores (n1)

Channel 2 MFD1

Low NA, SM or MM MFD2

p1 Configurable NA, SM or MM p2
(MFD ~ 10 µm)
MFD2

Channel 2 MFD1

Outer (new) cores (n2)

Conventional single-lens focusing: PROFA:

if p1 > p2 then MFD1 > MFD2 if p1 > p2 then MFD1 > MFD2 OR
MFD1 < MFD2 OR
MFD1 = MFD2
14  September 2016
 PROFA Products – PROFA1D
• 1-6 Channel Optical Couplers (linear)
• MFD ~ 2 mm (1/e2 intensity) @ 1550 nm
• 12 um channel pitch, ≤ 0.2 mm position
tolerance
• Insertion loss (IL) < 1 dB
• Crosstalk < -40 dB
• No air gap within optical path
• PM aligned and coupled: typical PER ≥
20 dB
• Slow axis ↔ TE
• Fast axis ↔ TM
15  September 2016
 PROFA Products – PROFA2D

• 1-61 Channel Optical Couplers (2D)

• MFD ~ 4-10 mm (1/e2 intensity) @ 1550 nm
• Channel spacing ~ 35-50 µm – optimal: 37 µm
• ≤ 0.4-1 mm position tolerance
• Insertion Loss (IL) < 1 dB
• No air gap within optical path
• Crosstalk < -35 dB

16  September 2016
 PROFA1D vs. PROFA2D
PROFA1D PROFA2D
Typical for coupling to Edge Surface
Mode field size (µm) ~2 ~ 4-10
Array Lattice Linear Hexagonal
35-50
Channel spacing (µm) 12
(37 optimal)
Channels currently available 1-6 1-61 PROFA 2D –
61-Channel Array

Singlemode (SM) /
Polarization Maintaining (PM) SM / PM SM
availability PROFA 1D – Single Channel

Typical coupling loss (fiber-to-

2 3-4
chip, dB)
Alignment accuracy required
≤ 0.2 ≤1 PROFA 1D – 6-Channel Array
(µm)
Price per channel (Qty:1)* ~ USD 400 ~ USD 30
* Pricing can be reduced significantly in quantity and depending on configuration
17  September 2016
 Face Coupling: 37 Channels, 1 Port
Pitch Reducing Optical Fiber Array

28 37 45 52

20 29 38 46 53

13 21 30 39 47 54

7 14 22 31 40 48 55 600 µm

8 15 23 32 41 49
PROFA channel pattern
9 16 24 33 42
superimposed on 1x32
10 17 25 34 splitter tree

• Coupling loss 3 dB (1 dB on top of VGC coupling loss)

• 0.7 dB standard deviation across all 37 channels

V. I. Kopp, et. al., "Two-dimensional, 37-channel, High-bandwidth Ultra-dense Silicon Photonics Optical Interface," in
Optical Fiber Communication Conference: Postdeadline Papers, (Optical Society of America, 2014), paper Th5C.4.

18  September 2016
 PROFA-Based Fiber Fanout for Multicore Fiber

Currently Available Configurations:

• Channel pitch: 35 – 45 µm Insertion Loss < 0.9 dB
• MFD: 6 – 10 µm
Crosstalk < - 48 dB
• NA: 0.1 – 0.21
19  September 2016
 The World’s First Open Access Photonic Packaging Pilot Line

20  September 2016
 PIXAPP (Advanced Training Programme)

First Course
January 2017

• PIC Design for Packaging

• Package Design (optical, electrical, thermal, mechanical)

• PIC Fabrication Fundamentals (lab based training)

• PIC Packaging Processes (lab based training)

• Application Examples (telecom, medical, sensors)

21  September 2016
 PIXAPP (The Packaging Technologies)

Photonic Integrated Circuit

(PIC)

Fibre Optics
Mechanical Package
Micro Optics

Thermal Management
Source Integration

Electrical Packaging Electronic Integration

22  September 2016
 PIXAPP Optical I/O Offerings

• Fibers: UV cure and laser weld attachment for both edge and

grating coupled PICs

• Micro optics: Wafer scale integration of micro optics on Si-PIC

grating couplers for fiber-free coupling

• Photonic Wirebonds: KIT (Germany) is partner

23  September 2016
Freedom Photonics Overview and Products

▪Developer and manufacturer of photonic

integrated circuit based products (InP, GaAs, Si-
dielectric, Si Photonics)
- Fast turn-around small lot wafer fabrication at
Nanotech cleanroom facility
▪Products and product development:
- 1310, 1550 and 1650nm Monolithic tunable lasers
- Monolithic tunable transmitters
- High power, high speed photodetectors

▪Optical I/O Offerings: Collimating micro-optics

to couple into fiber
- Flexibility in shaping the beam for the fiber

Freedom Photonics LLC Proprietary 24

 PROFA2D-Flex: Enabling Robust Low Profile Packaging
125 mm channel spacing
12 mm channel spacing
in coated flexible portion
PROFA holder or
MCF connector
37 mm channel spacing at
the PIC coupling plane
25  September 2016
• Multichannel transceiver
prototype (16 Tx/16 Rx) with
expected 1,600 Gb/s aggregate
bandwidth (50 Gb/s/channel)
• Coupling loss < 3.5 dB per VGC
• Crosstalk < -30 dB
• V. I. Kopp, et. al., “Flexible, Multi-channel, Ultra-dense
Optical Interface for Silicon Photonics," in 42nd European
Conference and Exhibition on Optical Communications,
p.755, September 2016.
• P. De Heyn, et. al. "Ultra-Dense 16x56Gb/s NRZ GeSi
EAM-PD Arrays Coupled to Multicore Fiber for Short-
Reach 896Gb/s Optical Links," in Optical Fiber
Communication Conference, OSA Technical Digest
(online) (Optical Society of America, 2017), paper Th1B.7.
 Tailorable Mode Field Size and Density: 1.5 µm x 2 Channels

19 mm spacing, dual
channel array coupled to
an InP Multi-Wavelength
Coherent Receiver
(Alcatel-Lucent)

C. R. Doerr, L. Zhang, and P. J. Winzer, OFC paper PDPB1, San Diego, CA, USA (2010)

26  September 2016
 Tailorable Mode Field Size and Density: 2 µm x 10 Channels

Doany et al., IEEE J. of Lightwave Technology 29, 475 (2011)

27  September 2016
 PIC Development Package - Edge

Removable cover

• Two single-channel PROFA1Ds

• Two I/O ports
• Open package design for electrical probing Work done with OpSIS
• Cryogenically stable package http://opsisfoundry.org/
28  September 2016
 PIC-PROFA1D Interface
PIC Development Package Close-up

1550 nm PANDA fiber coupled to 220 x 200 nm Si waveguide

< 2 dB coupling loss
< -20 dB polarization crosstalk
Work done with OpSIS
http://opsisfoundry.org/

29  September 2016
 FTNIR Spectrometer – Oil & Gas Industry
Hermetic Butterfly Package – PROFA1D

• Single-channel PROFA1D
• 1550 nm PANDA fiber coupled to Si waveguide
Work done with Luxmux Technology Corporation
http://www.luxmux.com//

30  September 2016
 Conclusion

• Plan for coupling and packaging at the earliest

design stage
• Internally review coupling/packaging needs
➢Designguide@chiralphotonics.com
➢Form an informed optical I/O opinion
• Engage with packaging house(s) early

31  September 2016