A Ridge Waveguide for Thermo-Optic Application

A thermal analysis and structure of a ridge single mode waveguide with a metal heater are presented. The steady-state temperature increases linearly and the thermal response becomes slower at the same power consumption, when the under-etched depth in the lower cladding increases. When the upper cladding thickness decreases, the thermal response becomes faster. This shows that a thinner upper cladding and a deeper etching are preferred to achieve a faster thermal response and lower power consumption, respectively. The numerical simulation also shows that the power consumption of the present ridge waveguide is almost a third of that for conventional one and the response time is half of that of the conventional one.