Ring LED with Plasmonic Resonator for Fast Optical Switching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing optical data transmission systems face challenges in rapidly switching light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and efficiently coupling light into optical waveguides, limiting high-speed data transmission rates.
Innovation Solution
An optical apparatus with a resonator ring having a quantum well surrounded by a metallic, corrugated body radiatively coupled to surface plasmons, enhancing the fall-off time of optical pulses and enabling faster switching and data transmission by coupling the resonator ring to a tangential waveguide.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If conventional LEDs are used for optical data transmission, then the system structure is simple, but the switching speed is limited and data transmission rate is low
Solution Approach 1:
The patent embeds the LED active region within a resonator ring structure, which is in turn coupled to a corrugated body. This nested configuration allows the LED to benefit from the resonator's field enhancement and the corrugated body's plasmonic effects, achieving ultrafast switching speeds while maintaining a compact integrated design.
Solution Approach 2:
The resonator ring acts as an intermediary between the LED active region and the corrugated body. It mediates the optical field interaction, enabling efficient energy transfer and enhancing the LED's switching speed by factor of 100 or more without requiring direct complex coupling between the LED and the corrugated structure.
2Duration of action of moving object
If conventional LEDs are used, then the device is easy to manufacture, but the fall-off time of radiation pulses is long
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the optical parameters of the LED system by introducing a resonator ring with specific resonant frequencies and a corrugated body with particular geometric features. These parameter changes transform the LED's radiation characteristics, reducing fall-off time by enhancing the optical field confinement and energy extraction efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The resonator ring exploits periodic optical resonance to enhance the LED's radiation pulse characteristics. By tuning the resonator's periodic structure to match the LED's emission frequency, the system achieves constructive interference that sharpens the pulse fall-off time while maintaining manufacturing feasibility through standard photolithography techniques.
3Productivity
If light is efficiently coupled into optical waveguides, then data transmission efficiency is high, but the coupling mechanism increases device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from conventional planar LED coupling to a three-dimensional resonator ring configuration with vertical cavity structure. This dimensional change enables efficient optical coupling in the vertical dimension while maintaining simple lateral integration with waveguides, achieving high data transmission rates without proportionally increasing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The resonator ring exploits optical resonance (analogous to mechanical vibration) to enhance light-matter interaction and improve coupling efficiency. The resonant oscillation of the optical field within the ring structure amplifies the emitted light, enabling efficient energy transfer to waveguides with simpler coupling structures compared to non-resonant approaches.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution significantly reduces the fall-off time of radiation pulses, allowing for higher data transmission rates and efficient modulation of optical energy, thereby enhancing the speed and efficiency of data transmission.
Implementation Method 1
an active region in the resonator ring generates optical energy in response to an electrical stimulus
Implementation Method 2
A metallic, corrugated body surrounds at least a portion of the resonator ring and the resonator ring is radiatively coupled to surface plasmons of the corrugated body
Data Source
AI summary
An optical apparatus includes an optical resonator ring having at least one active region. The active region is configured to generate optical energy under an electrical stimulus. The optical apparatus also includes a corrugated plasmonic body disposed around at least a portion of the resonator ring and radiatively coupled to the active region.