[TuP3D] D. Photonic devices and related technologies

[TuP3D-11] Formation and optical characterization of Ni-InGaAsP alloy for plasmonic electro-absorption modulators

〇Haruto Mori¹, Kentaro Komatsu¹, Kasidit Toprasertpong¹, Mitsuru Takenaka¹ (1. The Univ. of Tokyo (Japan))

InGaAsP plasmonic electro-absorption (EA) modulators offer the potential for ultra-compact and highly efficient operation. However, while plasmonic waveguides significantly enhance the Franz-Keldysh effect in InGaAsP, their fabrication is typically complex. To address this issue, a simplified fabrication approach based on alloying of metals with III-V semiconductors has been investigated. While photodetectors using Ni-InGaAs alloys have already been demonstrated, the optical properties of Ni-InGaAsP alloy and its potential applicability to plasmonic EA modulators remain largely unexplored. In this study, we demonstrate the formation and optical characterization of Ni-InGaAsP alloys to validate their applicability to plasmonic EA modulators. Nickel (Ni) was deposited onto InGaAsP substrates via electron-beam evaporation, followed by rapid thermal annealing (RTA) to induce alloying. We confirm that the Ni-InGaAsP alloy exhibits metallic behavior suitable for supporting SPPs. Additionally, we simulated the optical confinement in a plasmonic waveguide structure comprising the InGaAsP alloy and InGaAsP, confirming strong confinement. These results suggest that Ni-InGaAsP is a promising material for realizing highly integrated, process-simplified plasmonic devices.