All-optical switch and logic gates based on all-dielectric hybrid silicon-Ge2Sb2Te5 metamaterials

TL;DR

This paper proposes a novel all-dielectric hybrid metamaterial using silicon and Ge2Sb2Te5 for all-optical switching and logic gates in the shortwave infrared band, leveraging phase change properties of GST for active control.

Contribution

It introduces a new hybrid metamaterial design that enables reconfigurable all-optical switching and logic gates with high modulation depth and fast response.

Findings

Achieved 84% modulation depth at 1500 nm

Realized NOT, NOR, and OR logic gates simultaneously

Device exhibits fast, reversible phase transition of GST

Abstract

We numerically propose an all-dielectric hybrid metamaterial (MM) to realize all-optical switch and logic gates in shortwave infrared (SWIR) band. Such MM consists of one silicon rod and one Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST) rod pair. Utilizing the transition from amorphous to crystalline state of GST, such MM can produce electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) analogue with active control. Based on this, we realized all-optical switching at 1500 nm with a modulation depth 84%. Besides, three different logic gates, NOT, NOR and OR, can also be achieved in this device simultaneously. Thanks to the reversible and fast phase transition process of GST, this device possesses reconfigurable ability as well as fast response time, and has potential applications in future optical networks.