Impact of two-photon absorption on self-phase modulation in silicon waveguides

Opt Lett. 2007 Jul 15;32(14):2031-3. doi: 10.1364/ol.32.002031.

Abstract

We study the effects of two-photon absorption on the self-phase modulation (SPM) process in silicon waveguides while including both free-carrier absorption and free-carrier dispersion. An analytical solution is provided in the case in which the density of generated carriers is relatively low; it is useful for estimating spectral bandwidth of pulses at low repetition rates. The free-carrier effects are studied numerically with emphasis on their role on the nonlinear phase shift and spectral broadening. We also consider how the repetition rate of a pulse train affects the SPM process.