All Si-based optical interconnect for interchip signal transmission

Barriers to the commercial implementation of optical interconnects between integrated circuits (ICs) center around the fabrication of optical elements on wafers through conventional Si processes. Most other approaches for optical interconnects use direct bandgap emitters that require drastic changes in conventional fabrication processes. In this work, we demonstrate the ability to transmit electrical signals using Si-based components, i.e., the light was generated by biasing a p-n junction at avalanche breakdown voltage, light was coupled through a fiber cable made of SiO/sub 2/, and detected by an Si-based avalanche photodiode. Results presented demonstrate the switching behavior of the light emitter, transmission of the signal across the fiber, and measurement of the signal limited by the bandwidth of the receiver amplifier.