High-Speed Energy-Efficient Resonant Modulator on a Graphene-Organic Hybrid Platform

Abstract

Resonant electro-optic modulators are of interest for encoding electrical signals to the optical domain with an option to perform simultaneous wavelength-division multiplexing while reducing the modulation energy consumption. Here, we demonstrate a compact, high-speed, and energy-efficient resonant modulator exploiting the ultrafast characteristics of graphene and organic materials, enabling efficient electro-optic modulation on the silicon platform. Graphene, with its extraordinary electronic and optical properties, is used as a transparent electrode material that brings the radio frequency field close to the photonic mode with minimal extra losses, while the organic material provides a high linear electro-optic coefficient. This arrangement provides both efficient light modulation in a compact device with an active length of 50 μm and a large modulation bandwidth of ∼35 GHz. High-speed data transmission experiments demonstrate a line rate of 320 Gbit/s, while a rate of 128 Gbit/s is achieved under CMOS-compatible voltages with energy consumption of ∼10.1 femtojoules per bit. The presented technology offers a practical and promising route toward integration of graphene into high-speed communication links.