Periodic Reporting for period 1 - ALUVia (Aluminium oxide integrated photonic platform for applications in the ultraviolet (UV))
Período documentado: 2022-12-01 hasta 2023-11-30
UV Raman spectroscopy has demonstrated its advantages in the detection of trace gas (e.g. minute amounts of explosives or hazardous gases), quality control of raw substances, and monitoring of biological systems. It permits the detection of analytes that would otherwise be undetectable using visible or near-infrared Raman spectroscopy, such as monoclonal antibodies, which are currently being developed for new therapies against COVID-19, cancer, autoimmune diseases, and neurological disorders that result in the degeneration of body cells, such as Alzheimer's disease, with enormous potential impact in the pharmaceutical industry.
Quantum computers are expected to provide a degree of computing power that will permit to solve calculations not available currently to the most powerful supercomputers. Quantum computers are ideally suited to solve complex optimization problems, such as finding the most efficient route for a delivery courier, the best way to balance risk and reward in a financial portfolio, or the best way to run factory equipment quickly and reduce maintenance stoppages, therefore leading to more efficient manufacturing processes. Quantum computers based on multiple-ion traps represent one of the most advanced quantum computing technologies, where light resonant to different ion electronic transitions (typically in the UV wavelength region) is used to manipulate and readout the quantum state of the trapped ion.
However, current commercial UV Raman spectrometers as well as quantum computers are bulky, costly, extremely complex and non-scalable systems, which limit their potential scientific, economic and societal impact by preventing their large-scale market penetration.
The solution to this problem is photonic integration, which enables the reduction of the size and cost of optical systems while increasing their robustness, maintaining their performance and enabling scalability, as has been widely demonstrated in fields such as telecom/datacom, 5G communications and optical biosensing. Unfortunately, most integrated photonic platforms do not operate in the ultraviolet wavelength range, which is desirable for the aforementioned applications as well as for other technologies and fields such as atomic clocks, precision metrology, superresolution and structured UV microscopy, frequency synthesis and comb generation.
The Al2O3-on-SiO2 integrated photonic platform developed in the ALUVia project will be a key-enabling technology for applications operating in the UV wavelength range by enabling miniaturization, cost reduction and scalability, while performance is maintained. For this project, we have selected two technologies, namely UV Raman spectrometers and quantum computers, to function as test-beds for the Al2O3-on-SiO2 integrated photonic platform to demonstrate the platform’s excellent performance.
The overall objectives of the ALUVia project are:
- To establish the first European Al2O3-on-SiO2 (aluminum oxide on silicon dioxide) integrated photonic platform for operation in the ultraviolet (UV) wavelength region.
- Mature the technology, including the packaging, so that it can be offered commercially via the University of Twente spin-off company ALUVIA Photonics.
- Demonstrate the performance of the technology in two demonstrators: (1) an UV Waveguide based Raman spectrometer and (2) a multi-ion trap for quantum computer.
The successful completion of the ALUVia project will position Europe in a leadership position in UV integrated photonics.
Quantum computers are expected to provide a degree of computing power that will permit to solve calculations not available currently to the most powerful supercomputers. Quantum computers are ideally suited to solve complex optimization problems, such as finding the most efficient route for a delivery courier, the best way to balance risk and reward in a financial portfolio, or the best way to run factory equipment quickly and reduce maintenance stoppages, therefore leading to more efficient manufacturing processes. Quantum computers based on multiple-ion traps represent one of the most advanced quantum computing technologies, where light resonant to different ion electronic transitions (typically in the UV wavelength region) is used to manipulate and readout the quantum state of the trapped ion.
However, current commercial UV Raman spectrometers as well as quantum computers are bulky, costly, extremely complex and non-scalable systems, which limit their potential scientific, economic and societal impact by preventing their large-scale market penetration.
The solution to this problem is photonic integration, which enables the reduction of the size and cost of optical systems while increasing their robustness, maintaining their performance and enabling scalability, as has been widely demonstrated in fields such as telecom/datacom, 5G communications and optical biosensing. Unfortunately, most integrated photonic platforms do not operate in the ultraviolet wavelength range, which is desirable for the aforementioned applications as well as for other technologies and fields such as atomic clocks, precision metrology, superresolution and structured UV microscopy, frequency synthesis and comb generation.
The Al2O3-on-SiO2 integrated photonic platform developed in the ALUVia project will be a key-enabling technology for applications operating in the UV wavelength range by enabling miniaturization, cost reduction and scalability, while performance is maintained. For this project, we have selected two technologies, namely UV Raman spectrometers and quantum computers, to function as test-beds for the Al2O3-on-SiO2 integrated photonic platform to demonstrate the platform’s excellent performance.
The overall objectives of the ALUVia project are:
- To establish the first European Al2O3-on-SiO2 (aluminum oxide on silicon dioxide) integrated photonic platform for operation in the ultraviolet (UV) wavelength region.
- Mature the technology, including the packaging, so that it can be offered commercially via the University of Twente spin-off company ALUVIA Photonics.
- Demonstrate the performance of the technology in two demonstrators: (1) an UV Waveguide based Raman spectrometer and (2) a multi-ion trap for quantum computer.
The successful completion of the ALUVia project will position Europe in a leadership position in UV integrated photonics.
The main achievements of the first year of the ALUVia project are:
- Demonstration of reproducible manufacturing of Al2O3 layers with <0.5 dB/cm of slab propagation losses at 377 nm of wavelength.
- Demonstration of channel waveguide losses ~1.5 dB/cm at 369 nm of wavelength.
- Process Design Kit (PDK) of parametrized basic building blocks available for the layout of circuits in the Al2O3 platform.
- Set-up of an multi-project wafer (MPW) schedule, from which MPW1 has been carried out and the chips delivered. MPW2 and MPW3 are being processed.
- Preliminary packaging technology concept.
Some additional activities included:
- Design and realization of UV WERS experimental setup for characterizing and validating ALUVia chips
- Conceptualization and setup for testing the cryo capabilities of packaged chips for ion trapping
- Preliminary realization of building blocks such as a modulator and splitter network
- Initial tests for polishing of PIC facets and PCB mounting for packaging of sensors and ion traps
- Initial results for ITO deposition
- VUV Vase measurements which confirm a 170 nm bandgap for the material
- Sourcing of fibers for 270 nm wavelength
- First round of fabrication for component needed in surface ion traps (grating couplers)
- Proximity error correction (PEC) calibrated and used for reliable design-to-fab dimensions of waveguides
- Demonstration of reproducible manufacturing of Al2O3 layers with <0.5 dB/cm of slab propagation losses at 377 nm of wavelength.
- Demonstration of channel waveguide losses ~1.5 dB/cm at 369 nm of wavelength.
- Process Design Kit (PDK) of parametrized basic building blocks available for the layout of circuits in the Al2O3 platform.
- Set-up of an multi-project wafer (MPW) schedule, from which MPW1 has been carried out and the chips delivered. MPW2 and MPW3 are being processed.
- Preliminary packaging technology concept.
Some additional activities included:
- Design and realization of UV WERS experimental setup for characterizing and validating ALUVia chips
- Conceptualization and setup for testing the cryo capabilities of packaged chips for ion trapping
- Preliminary realization of building blocks such as a modulator and splitter network
- Initial tests for polishing of PIC facets and PCB mounting for packaging of sensors and ion traps
- Initial results for ITO deposition
- VUV Vase measurements which confirm a 170 nm bandgap for the material
- Sourcing of fibers for 270 nm wavelength
- First round of fabrication for component needed in surface ion traps (grating couplers)
- Proximity error correction (PEC) calibrated and used for reliable design-to-fab dimensions of waveguides
The main result of the first year of project implementation is the demonstration of ultra-low loss waveguides in the UV: a record low propagation loss of 1.3 dB/cm at 369 nm of wavelength. Such performance is sufficient to allow many potential applications in field such as UV microscopy, spectroscopy and metrology in addition to the two that are pursued in the project, namely quantum computers based on trapped ions and UV-Raman spectroscopy.