08/07/2013

COMSOL simulates processors for fiber optics communication

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COMSOL simulates processors for fiber optics communication

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Try the Software Hands-On Get Pricing Contact Sales COMSOL News 2012 COMSOL Conference User Presentations COMSOL Access Serge Bidnyk, Enablence Technologies Inc., Ottawa, ON, Canada In fiber optics systems, information from an electronic source is converted into light signals. The light is guided into a glass fiber and travels down its optical core. The light remains within the fiber because the refractive index of materials surrounding the optical core of the fiber is far lower than that of the optical core itself. When the light signal arrives at its destination, it is converted into the electronic form for further processing. Optical processors, such as those that Enablence designs, manipulate the light at critical points along its path. At the source, a processor may multiplex light signals to a denser form. At the destination, optical processors can demultiplex the dense signal into fundamental wave lengths, which eases the conversion back to electronic form. And so on. Share this page Email LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Delicious Digg Stumbleupon More services...

Virtual test environment

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COMSOL simulates processors for fiber optics communication

Dr. Serge Bidnyk uses COMSOL Multiphysics in an iterative design strategy to develop optical processors for Enablence. To avoid unnecessary constraints on the design, he chooses materials and manufacturing methods that are as non-restrictive as possible, including innovative deposition techniqu es, advanced oxide etching, and metallization. What the COMSOL Multiphysics simulations offer the design process is a "virtual testing" ground, he makes predictions for (and learns from) unusual designs, extreme conditions, limiting behaviors, impacts from coupled processes, to name a few (e.g. Fig.1). Required for the physics-based predictions is the capacity to handle: arbitrary geometries; individual and coupled processes (e.g., Maxwell's equations, heat transfer, stress/strain, chemistry); user-defined governing equations; vector equations; inhomogeneous and anisotropic material properties; complex numbers in material properties; freely prescribed boundary and initial conditions; flexible postprocessing, and full access to the solvers via a scripting program. Dr. Bidnyk says he chose COMSOL Multiphysics because of its unique ability to meet all these analyses requirements. When questioned about the user flexibility aspects, he explains, "No other package would let me get anywhere near as close to the simulation engine as would COMSOL Multiphysics".

An iterative design case

Consider the DWDM (dense wavelength-division multiplexing) optical processor designed by Dr. Bidnyk using COMSOL Multiphysics simulations. The DWDM typically consists of a substrate and a series of waveguide cores with either a surficial cladding or some filling material to encase the core. How a given frequency signal travels through the core, or the mode number, is determined by the way the light bounces off the channel walls. There can be, for instance, 20 or 30 modes for just one color of light, each with its own intensity profile and characteristic speed. A 10 mm x 30 mm device will handle 40 optical waveguide cores. With each channel carrying 40 GHz of information bandwidth, a total bandwidth of 1.6 terabits per optical link is obtained, this level of information transfer eclipses anything possible with electronic systems.

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COMSOL simulates processors for fiber optics communication

Dr. Serge Bidnyk of Enablence uses COMSOL Multiphysics to optimize photonic processor design. In a given design loop, Dr. Bidnyk would use COMSOL Multiphysics to address the same well-defined question for incrementally different DWDM configurations. Typical questions are: What is the intensity distribution in the waveguide core? What is the passband performance for this waveguide? Which Eigenmodes are sustainable in the waveguide? or What is their speed of propagation? Once the question is decided, the simulations are conducted in a rapid fire batch mode. To minimize computational time and duplication of effort, he finds the simplest geometry that represents the system without losing valuable detail. The results of the batch simulations can be used to cull geometries that do not work and identify the interesting workable ones that should receive further attention and analysis. The biggest problem in optical processing is birefringence, which plagues the ability to process light. For just one DWDM configuration, a simulation procedure is established, typically with the COMSOL Multiphysics graphical user interface (GUI). The appropriate governing equation is chosen, for instance, Maxwell`s vector wave equations for a complex permittivity tensor. Then the geometry is defined, material property values are entered, and boundary conditions are set. The material properties may involve complex numbers. The boundaries typically are some combination of absorbing, periodic, metallic and magnetic boundary conditions. Once the problem is set up, the appropriate solver is chosen. Where possible, Dr. Bidnyk uses the adaptive meshing algorithm, which instructs COMSOL Multiphysics to automatically zoom in on areas where the solution changes rapidly. During postprocessing he may generate graphics and evaluate certain quantitative results.

Fig. 2. A semiconductor wafer can contain thousands of photonic processors. In this photo you can see a dozen separate devices, each a rectangle of less than 0.2 square centimeters. Each device is
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COMSOL simulates processors for fiber optics communication

capable of processing far larger amounts of information compared to anything possible with electronic systems. The set up for Eigenvalue analysis of the DWDM is straightforward (Fig. 3). Since the device has 40 waveguide cores lying side by side and sandwiched between substrate and fill, the geometry is symmetric, the same slice is repeated 40 times. Only a representative zone of the DWDM need be modeled. Periodic boundaries are placed where the solution would repeat. With roughly 4000 elements to the cross-section, finding the Eigenvalue solution requires approximately two minutes. The results (Fig. 1) reveal that the periodic boundaries are effective at simulating the desired symmetry condition.

Fig. 3. A finite-element mesh of a typical photonic device shows the major divisions. The waveguide cores in the center are surrounded by a cladding or filling material that has a substantially lower index of refraction, thus containing lightwaves within the optical core channels. Each such channel can accommodate optical transmission rates as high as 40 GHz. What if you have hundreds of variations on one DWDM design? Learning how to perform a little automation with a Matlab routine suddenly is extremely important. First, open the DWDM model (above) in the COMSOL-with-Matlab GUI, and save it as an M-file. Now to run the COMSOL Multiphysics model from the Matlab command line, simply enter the filename. All that remains is to modify the M-file with a Matlab script so that it repeats the COMSOL Multiphysics commands for each geometry. With an eigenvalue solution in two minutes and a Matlab automation routine, Bidnyk can analyze hundreds of geometries per day. "I couldn't really consider using any other tools," says Bidnyk. "The fact that COMSOL Multiphysics can be run from the Matlab command line results in enormous time savings," he adds.

Advanced analyses
Results from batch mode simulations can be used to identify which designs merit in-depth analysis, like coupling between thermal, mechanical, electromagnetic, and/or chemical impacts. Consider birefringence, for example. Birefringence is an optical property whereby the refractive index of a material differs with the polarization of the light. Inherent birefringence arises during the manufacturing process because materials are
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COMSOL simulates processors for fiber optics communication

stressed as the hot wafer cools down. Form birefringence occurs when the refractive index varies with geometry. Comments Dr. Bidnyk, "The biggest problem in optical processing is birefringence, which plagues the ability to process light." Because the polarization of light is unknown during transmission in the cable, it is critical for a device to operate identically at any polarization. To examine birefringence with a numerical model requires vector analysis. Only a very few software packages offer this capability, and COMSOL Multiphysics is among them. Dr. Bidnyk uses COMSOL Multiphysics to account for inherent and form birefringence in separate steps. For analyzing inherent birefringence, he adds a simulation of mechanical stresses and assigns inhomogeneous and anisotropic optical properties to the waveguide. Now the model can handle different growth and annealing temperatures and yield precise values for the stress-induced birefringence. For form birefringence, he uses the inherent birefringence analysis (as above) and then finds a core geometry with a form birefringence that compensates for the inherent birefringence, resulting in a device that is essentially polarization-insensitive. COMSOL's unusual capacity to do both vector analysis and accept refractive indices built with complex numbers (as above) also allows Dr. Bidnyk to analyze other difficultto-address issues. Consider what doping types and levels will achieve desired amplification and attenuation rates. "Some packages just won't accept complex numbers," explains Bidnyk, "but COMSOL Multiphysics does, and my algorithm can thereby calculate attenuation for any core geometry." This capability is very helpful for considering advanced design options. Device engineers, for example, could dope core material during manufacturing to alter its amplification or attenuation properties. With the complex part of the refractive index, he can determine to what degree the doping will change how the core attenuates or amplifies the light passing through it.

Dense yield, lowered cost

Clever design strategies, such as Dr. Bidnyk's, are making it possible for Enablence to produce highperformance chips at dramatically lower cost. Careful miniaturization is increasing the density of photonic devices that will fit on a single wafer: common photonic technologies produce 5 to 30 chips on a wafer, but Enablence packs as many as 3000 chips on each one (Fig. 2). These small chip sizes bring high manufacturing yields as they limit the impact of wafer defects and nonuniformities. Moreover, the high density lowers packaging costs, which are a significant factor in the cost of photonic and optoelectronic products. North America Asia/Pacific Europe North America Brazil China Denmark Finland France Germany India Italy Netherlands Norway Portugal Spain
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COMSOL simulates processors for fiber optics communication

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