Silicon Chip With Advanced Photonic Integration Fits Together Like Lego, Opens New Opportunities to Semiconductor Industry

Radio-frequency filters play an important role in maintaining radio frequency and microwave system signal fidelity by removing unwanted signals and keeping the desired signals of interest. To operate within crowded RF spectral environments, RF filters need fine spectral resolution and must exhibit broadband frequency tunability.

Aside from this, RF filters should also achieve small size, weight, and power (SWaP) to meet the operational demands of future radio frequency. However, state-of-the-art RF filter technology fails to meet these requirements simultaneously.

Compact RF Filter

Researchers at the University of Sydney Nano Institute developed a compact silicon semiconductor that integrates electronics with photonic components. In the study "Integrated microwave photonic notch filter using a heterogeneously integrated Brillouin and active-silicon photonic circuit," the novel technology expands radio frequency bandwidth and the ability to control information that flows through the unit accurately.

Expanded bandwidth allows more information to flow through the chip while including photonics enables advanced filter controls. This combination can lead to the creation of a versatile new semiconductor device.

The chip was developed using an emerging technology in silicon photonics, enabling the integration of diverse systems on semiconductors less than 5 millimeters wide. The chip design was led by Dr. Alvaro Casas Bedoya, Associate Director for Photonic Integration in the School of Physics, who claims that the unique method of heterogeneous materials integration took ten years to make.

Developing the photonic integrated circuit involves the combination of overseas semiconductor foundries in making the basic chip wafer. Study lead author Professor Ben Eggleton compares this to fitting together Lego building blocks where new materials are integrated through advanced component packaging.

The chip is expected to have applications in advanced radar, wireless networks, satellite systems, and the roll-out of 6G and 7G telecommunications. A photonic circuit in the chip means having an impressive 15 gigahertz bandwidth of tunable frequencies with a spectral resolution down to 37 megahertz. This type of technology holds the key to advanced sovereign manufacturing.

The Potential of Novel Photonic Chip

Most items on the Federal Government's List of Critical Technologies in the National Interest in Australia rely on semiconductors. This invention is considered a significant advance for microwave and integrated photonics research.

The success of this work paves the way for a new generation of compact, high-resolution radio frequency photonic filters with wideband frequency tunability, which is especially beneficial in spaceborne radio frequency communication payloads. These opportunities open possibilities for improved communications and sensing capabilities.

This architecture can help the country develop its sovereign chip manufacturing without relying exclusively on international foundries. The new silicon chip can also assist in creating high-technology value-added factories at places such as the Aerotropolis precinct in Western Sydney.

Eggleton claims that the invention means the work at Sydney Nano fits well with initiatives such as the Semiconductor Sector Service Bureau (S3B), which aims to develop a local semiconductor ecosystem. According to Eggleton, the heterogeneous integration of chalcogenide glass with silicon shows the potential to reshape the local semiconductor landscape.