Thermo-optic Switch Based on Multimode Interference

A thermo-optic multimode interference (MMI) switch with a ridge structure on top of the MMI and also introducing another ridge in the silicon substrate was proposed and the performance of the switch was simulated. In the design, one heating electrode is used to alert the refractive index at spot image which change the phase of this image to realize the switching function. The simulation results indicate that the MMI switch can satisfy 39dB crosstalk at two states. The electric power consumption for the MMI switch with these ridges is less than half of that of a conventional MMI switch.