Low-power-consumption optical interconnect on silicon by transfer-printing for used in opto-isolators

On-chip optical interconnects heterogeneously integrated on silicon wafers by transfer-print technology are presented for the first time. Thin (<5 μm), micron sized light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and photo diodes (PDs) are prefabricated and transfer-printed to silicon wafer with polymer waveguides built between them. Data transmission with total power consumption as low as 1 mW, signal to noise ratio of >250 and current transfer ratio of 0.1% in a compact volume of <0.0004 mm³ are demonstrated. Experiment shows that the polymer waveguide between the LED and PD plays a key role in enhancing the data transmission efficiency. Reciprocal performance for bidirectional transmission is also achieved. The results show the potential for cost-effective and low profile form-factor on-chip opto-isolators.