Energy Transfer Theory Between ER3+ Ion and Silicon Nanocrystal in Optical Cavity and Electric Field

Abstract

<p> The need for higher bandwidth and people's desire to be "always connected" have spurred a new era of silicon photonics. The traditional integrated electrical transmission lines have been an obstacle preventing ultra high speed communication. Using monolithic chips of integrated optoelectronic circuits from silicon provides an economic way to realize Tetra Byte/Second bandwidth in a variety of areas such as "fiber to the home" and the buses linking chips inside computer.</p> <p> The heart of such optoelectronics-silicon laser-is still in pursuit. One of the most promising approaches is the erbium doped silicon nanocrystals embedded in silica system. External photon or hot electrons injection excites the silicon nanocrystals, which then transfer their energies to nearby erbium ions to emit light at 1.55 μm wavelength range.</p> <p> In this thesis, we investigate the effects of cavity and electric field on energy transfer from Si nanocrystals (Si-nc's) to Er ions, and simulate material gain in such systems. Our results show that microcavity can enhance the Forster energy transfer and material gain, reducing the requirements for Si-nc pumping. The electric field will hinder the radiation decay of Si-nc, but we have to further explore the tunneling mechanism before concluding the overall effect of electric field. Some future work needs to be done, which will shine some light on the design of the silicon laser.</p>