Integrated optical waveguide and photodetector arrays based on comb-like ZnO structures

Abstract

On-chip integrations of photonic waveguides and high-performance electrically-driven devices, by combining different active or passive optical components, are imperative towards the advancement of nanophotonic circuitry systems. We experimentally demonstrate the collective optical functionalities of ZnO microstructures towards designing an integrated photonic system by combining the optical waveguiding and detection properties. Comb-like microstructures composed of periodic arrays of smooth, single-crystalline ZnO nanowires are synthesized for these purposes. We demonstrate that ZnO comb structures could be used as optical waveguides, which can manipulate the blue, green, and red laser beams to an interconnected waveguide array. These results are substantiated by extensive investigation of waveguiding properties of single, stacked or crossbar nanowires, and different branched microstructures. These waveguide arrays can be successfully coupled with another ZnO comb-based photodetector and the collective performances of the integrated optical micro-device units are investigated in detail. This study shows that ZnO comb-based optical waveguide arrays have the great potential to be used as a bottom-up strategy for the construction of various miniaturized photonic demultiplexer systems.