Ultrabroadband supercontinuum generation in a CMOS-compatible platform

Abstract

We demonstrate supercontinuum generation spanning 1.6 octaves in silicon nitride waveguides. Using a 4.3 cm-long waveguide, with an effective nonlinearity of $\gamma =1.2{\mathrm{W}}^{-1}{\mathrm{m}}^{-1}$, we generate a spectrum extending from 665 nm to 2025 nm (at $-30\mathrm{dB}$) with 160 pJ pulses. Our results offer potential for a robust, integrated, and low-cost supercontinuum source for applications including frequency metrology, optical coherence tomography, confocal microscopy, and optical communications.