Tunable optical delay line based on integrated grating-assisted contradirectional couplers

Tunable optical delay lines are one of the key building blocks in optical communication and microwave systems. In this work, tunable optical delay lines based on integrated grating-assisted contradirectional couplers are proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The device performance is comprehensively improved in terms of parameter optimization, apodization analysis, and electrode design. Tunable group delay lines of 50 ps at different wavelengths within the bandwidth of 12 nm are realized with a grating length of 1.8 mm. Under thermal tuning mode, the actual delay tuning range is around 20 ps at 7.2 V voltage. At last, a new scheme adopting an ultra-compact reflector for doubling group delay is proposed and verified, achieving a large group delay line of 400 ps and a large dispersion value up to 5.5 × 106 ps∕nm · km within bandwidth of 12 nm. Under thermal tuning mode, the actual delay tuning range is around 100 ps at 8 V voltage.