Second-order nonlinear optical processes on a CMOS-compatible 8-inch aluminum nitride photonics platform

Second-order nonlinear optical processes on a CMOS-compatible 8-inch aluminum nitride photonics platform

Integrated Optics: Devices, Materials, and Technologies XXX

10.1117/12.3079504

https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3079504

Nanxi Li, Hyo Jun Joo, Yangyang Zhuge, Wing Wai Chung, Yanmei Cao, Zhan Jiang Quek, Landobasa Y. M. Tobing, Chong Pei Ho, Dawn T. H. Tan, Chengkuo Lee, Xianshu Luo

04 March 2026

Li, N., Joo, H. J., Zhuge, Y., Chung, W. W., Cao, Y., Quek, Z. J., Tobing, L. Y. M., Ho, C. P., Tan, D. T. H., Lee, C., & Luo, X. (2026). Second-order nonlinear optical processes on a CMOS-compatible 8-inch aluminum nitride photonics platform. In S. M. García-Blanco & P. Cheben (Editors), Integrated Optics: Devices, Materials, and Technologies XXX. https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3079504

Aluminum nitride (AlN) is an emerging CMOS-compatible material for integrated photonics and can be deposited at wafer scale using a single-step physical vapor deposition process. Compared with conventional silicon photonics materials, AlN uniquely offers both a strong second-order nonlinear optical response and intrinsic piezoelectric properties, enabling efficient second-order nonlinear optical generation and on-chip tuning functionalities. In this work, we demonstrate significant second-order nonlinear optical processes in an AlN microring resonator fabricated on a CMOS-compatible 8-inch AlN photonics platform. The microring exhibits an intrinsic quality factor exceeding one million. When pumped near 1580 nm, pronounced second-harmonic generation (SHG) around 790 nm is observed using a visible-wavelength spectrum analyzer, with a side-mode suppression ratio exceeding 20 dB. The demonstrated second-order nonlinear optical performance on a wafer-scale, CMOS-compatible AlN photonics platform highlights its strong potential for integrated frequency-comb generation and applications in AR/VR, biosensing, and quantum photonics.

Publisher Copyright

This research / project is supported by the Agency for Science, Technology and Research - Chip-scale Multispectral 3D Scanner (CMUS)
Grant Reference no. : M23M5a0069

This research / project is supported by the Agency for Science, Technology and Research - On-chip Mode-Locked Lasers using Heterogeneous Integration of Graphene for Scalable Manufacturing
Grant Reference no. : M23M6c0109

This research / project is supported by the National Research Foundation (NRF) - Competitive Research Programme - CMOS Photonics Platform for Next Generation Photonics AI Engines
Grant Reference no. : NRF-F-CRP-2024-0006

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https://oar.a-star.edu.sg/communities-collections/articles/23123

10.1117/12.3079504

Institute of Microelectronics