Objective
While the detection of weak signals (down to the single photon level) in the optical frequency range is routine on account of the high photon energy (compared to thermal excitation energy kBT) and the availability of efficient detectors, this is not the case in the radio frequency (RF) and microwave frequency regimes wherein thermal (Johnson) noise in detectors swamps out the faint RF signals (in applications from radio astronomy, MRI to radar) and requires the use of cryogenic amplifiers. The ability to map signals efficiently from the microwave to optical regime becomes paramount for distant systems to communicate with each other using low loss telecom fibers. Both classical (radio over fiber systems) and quantum (linking two superconducting qubit processors in two dilution fridges) information processing systems will benefit greatly from the development of an efficient RF to optical signal transducer.
I have been developing efficient RF to optical transduction schemes in GaAs cavity optomechanical systems (KC Balram et al., Nature Photonics (2016)) by exploiting its favorable piezoelectric (for coupling RF signals to propagating acoustic waves) and elasto-optic (for engineering strong acousto-optic interactions) properties. In this project, I would like to extend this work and address the issue of weak RF signal detection by up-converting RF signals to the optical domain using integrated Stimulated Brillouin Scattering (SBS) and shot-noise limited optical detection. Piezoelectric SBS systems can also be used to build high frequency, high gain RF amplifiers with noise figures that can be lower than conventional RF amplifiers. Working in a novel GaAs on insulator platform helps provide some unique advantages (tightly confined acoustic and optical modes with large modal overlap and a large elasto-optic coefficient leading to significant Brillouin gain) while holding the potential for interfacing complex circuitry in a well-established III-V materials platform.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been validated by the project's team.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been validated by the project's team.
- engineering and technology electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering information engineering telecommunications radio technology radio frequency
- natural sciences physical sciences optics cavity optomechanics
- engineering and technology electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering electronic engineering signal processing
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
ERC-STG - Starting Grant
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2017-STG
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
BS8 1QU Bristol
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.