Photonic chip-based high-efficiency soliton microcombs via electroopitc-Kerr synergy

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates a high-efficiency, integrated photonic chip microcomb system by combining on-chip pulse generation with dissipative Kerr soliton formation, achieving record conversion efficiency for compact optical applications.

Contribution

The work introduces an integrated lithium niobate laser and silicon nitride microresonator system for on-chip pulse and soliton generation, achieving nearly 44% conversion efficiency.

Findings

Achieved 43.9% pump-to-soliton conversion efficiency.

Integrated on-chip pulse and soliton generation on a single photonic chip.

Enabled stable dissipative Kerr soliton formation with tunable pulse sources.

Abstract

Temporal soliton mode-locking in coherently pumped microcavities provides a promising platform for miniaturized frequency comb systems. While significant progress has been made, achieving high conversion efficiency in such microcombs remains a critical challenge. Soliton generation through pulse pumping has emerged as an effective strategy to improve conversion efficiency. However, the on-chip integration of pulse generation with dissipative Kerr soliton (DKS) formation within the photonic chip has not yet been realized. In this work, we demonstrate a photonic chip-based soliton microcomb with high conversion efficiency, achieved by integrating on-chip pulse generation and DKS generation. The pulsed laser, fabricated on a lithium niobate-on-insulator (LNOI) platform, delivers a 35.5GHz repetition rate with broadly tunable center frequencies. By coupling these on-chip pulses to a silicon nitride microresonator, we achieve stable DKS generation with a pump-to-soliton conversion efficiency of 43.9% under steady-state conditions. This integrated architecture establishes a viable pathway toward chip-scale soliton microcombs with unprecedented efficiency, opening up new possibilities for optical communications, precision spectroscopy, and photonic sensing.