CAREER: Semiconductor on Nitride PhoXonic Integrated Circuit (SONIC) Platform for Chip-Scale RF and Optical Signal Processing

职业：用于芯片级射频和光信号处理的氮化物 PhoXonic 集成电路 (SONIC) 平台上的半导体

• 批准号: 2340405
• 负责人: Siddhartha Ghosh
• 金额: $ 54.01万
• 依托单位: Northeastern University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2024-04-15 至 2029-03-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2340405&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Semiconductor; Nitride; PhoXonic; Integrated

This project aims to develop novel microsystems that enable seamless interaction between acoustic, optical, and electrical fields to generate transformative effects in communications and information processing. In particular, the devices envisioned herein will simultaneously control “phoXons” (i.e., phonons or photons) and the interactions between them to enable unique opportunities. The research and education plans proposed in this project will directly advance national priorities such as the CHIPS and Science Act and the National Quantum Initiative by revolutionizing multifunctional phoXonic microsystems. This project will develop approaches to enable enhanced functionality in radio-frequency front-end (RFFE) signal processing components that can provide a paradigm shift for system efficiency and spectrum utilization in the $20 billion global market for RFFE modules by enabling seamless integration of major components, which currently require separate modules. Likewise, distributed quantum processing through microwave-optical transducers will generate new opportunities for addressing major societal problems such as drug discovery and supply chain optimization. Given the massive proliferation of communication and computing technologies in the coming years, there is a distinct need for engineers conversant in manipulating acoustic, optical and electric fields using modern semiconductor technology. Collaborating with the highly successful Center for STEM Education at Northeastern University, the proposed educational/outreach program will also engage more than 50 students (primary school – graduate levels) in each year of the program, through STEM field trips, high school programs, undergraduate research and a 2-course sequence on phononic integrated circuits to attract new students to the field.This CAREER project is dedicated to advancing novel functionalities in RF acoustic microsystems and enabling highly reconfigurable acousto-optics. This will be implemented through the development of the Semiconductor on Nitride PhoXonic Integrated Circuit (SONIC). The core contributions of this program will involve the success of 4 major tasks: 1) demonstration of low-loss phononic devices, 2) efficient acoustic wave amplification, 3) acousto-optic system development and 4) acoustoelectrically-enhanced optomechanical structures. While these device classes have all been validated in separate demonstrations, they have never been co-integrated in this manner. Based on strong preliminary results from the PI’s laboratory, the PI hypothesizes this approach will offer significant advances to the state-of-the-art (SoA) in applications such as integrated circulators, reconfigurable time-delay synthesizers, efficient acousto-optic modulators and enhanced Brillouin effects in ultra-stable chip-scale lasers. SONIC devices will therefore provide significant impacts in producing compact systems that can concurrently serve multiple bands (0.1-20 GHz), provide a trade-off of gain with added bandwidth and enable loss-compensated delays spanning a range not accessible with CMOS or photonics alone. SONIC will also enable hybrid quantum systems using phonon buses or microwave-optical conversion for next-generation quantum networks.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该项目旨在开发新型微系统，使声、光和电场之间能够无缝交互，从而在通信和信息处理中产生变革性效果。特别是，本文设想的设备将同时控制“声子”（即声子或光子）和该项目提出的研究和教育计划将通过革新多功能光子微系统，直接推进国家优先事项，例如《芯片和科学法案》和《国家量子计划》。增强射频前端 (RFFE) 信号处理组件功能的方法，通过实现目前需要的主要组件的无缝集成，可以在价值 200 亿美元的全球 RFFE 模块市场中实现系统效率和频谱利用率的范式转变。同样，鉴于未来几年通信和计算技术的大规模普及，通过微波光学传感器进行分布式量子处理将为解决药物发现和供应链优化等重大社会问题带来新的机会。对于熟悉操作的工程师与东北大学非常成功的 STEM 教育中心合作，拟议的教育/推广计划每年还将吸引 50 多名学生（小学至研究生级别）。 ，通过 STEM 实地考察、高中课程、本科生研究和声子集成电路的 2 门课程序列来吸引新学生进入该领域。这个职业项目致力于推进射频声学微系统的新颖功能和高度赋能这将通过氮化物光电集成电路（SONIC）的开发来实现，该计划的核心贡献将涉及 4 个主要任务的成功：1）低损耗声子器件的演示，2）。 ) 高效声波放大，3) 声光系统开发和 4) 声电增强光机械结构，而这些设备类别全部具备。虽然它们在单独的演示中得到了验证，但从未以这种方式进行协同集成。基于 PI 实验室的强有力的初步结果，PI 领导的这种方法将为应用程序中的最先进 (SoA) 带来重大进步。因此，超稳定芯片级激光器中的集成循环器、可重构延时合成器、高效声光调制器和增强的布里渊效应将对生产产生重大影响。可以同时服务多个频段（0.1-20 GHz）的紧凑型系统，可以在增益与增加的带宽之间进行权衡，并实现跨越仅用 CMOS 或光子学无法实现的范围的损耗补偿延迟，也将使使用 SONIC 的混合量子系统成为可能。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。