Plasmonic electro-optic modulators on lead zirconate titanate platform

• Published in: Nanophotonics (Berlin, Germany) Vol. 13; no. 18; pp. 3591 - 3598
• Main Authors: Yezekyan, Torgom, Thomaschewski, Martin, Thrane, Paul Conrad Vaagen, Bozhevolnyi, Sergey I.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin De Gruyter 20-08-2024; Walter de Gruyter GmbH
• Subjects: Communications systems; Directional couplers; Electric fields; electro-optic modulators; Electrodes; Frequency response; Gold; Lead; Lead zirconate titanates; Modulation; Modulators; Optics; Optoelectronics; plasmonic modulators; Plasmonics; PZT; Second harmonic generation; Signal generation; Substrates; Thin films
• ISSN: 2192-8614; 2192-8606; 2192-8614
• DOI: 10.1515/nanoph-2024-0039

The advancement in material platforms exhibiting strong and robust electro-optic effects is crucial for further progress in developing highly efficient and miniaturized optoelectronic components with low power consumption for modern optical communication systems. In this work, we investigate thin-film lead zirconate titanate (PZT) substrates grown by a chemical solution deposition technique as a potential platform for on-chip plasmonic electro-optic modulators. A high modulation depth (>40 %) is achieved with 15 μm-long electro-optic directional coupler modulators. An unusual cutoff in the modulation frequency response at ∼200 kHz is observed and further studied with respect to possible reorientation effects. Second-harmonic generation signals are found influenced by the externally applied electric field, indicating that the domain reorientation effect can be responsible for the unusual frequency response observed.