We developed a built-in optical input module for a superconducting single-flux-quantum (SFQ) circuit. An SFQ pulse generation could be achieved by 1550 nm band optical pulse input, whose power was less than 1 mW.
We developed an optical input module with a superconducting single-flux-quantum (SFQ) circuit for application of ultrafast photonic networks in the near future. The optical input module, consisting of a built-in photodiode (PD) with a coplanar waveguide transmission line, was fabricated on an InP substrate and flip-chip bonded with the SFQ circuit on a Si substrate. The fabricated PD showed photosensitivities of more than 0.2 A/W for the wavelength range 1480 to 1530 nm at 4.2 K. SFQ pulses were generated by less than 1 mW optical pulse input.
We developed an optical input module consisting of built-in metal-semiconductor-metal photodiodes (MSM-PDs) and co-planar waveguide transmission lines fabricated on an InP substrate, which is flip-chip bonded with a single-flux-quantum (SFQ) circuit fabricated on a Si substrate. To improve photosensitivity of the MSM-PD for a wavelength above 1530 nm at 4 K, we tested the MSM-PDs made of lattice mismatched In1-xGaxAs films on InP substrates. By employing In1-xGaxAs with x=0.44, an apparent reduction of photosensitivity for a wavelength above 1530 nm was suppressed. We also tested newly designed DC/SFQ converters with higher input current sensitivities. The observed current sensitivity was improved to 41 μA, while that in the conventional DC/SFQ converter was 140 μA.
We report on the demonstration of the error-free operation of optical-to-electrical (O/E) signal converter based on superconducting nanowires with single-flux-quantum circuits. Optical input pulses were generated by the pulse pattern generator and the optical modulator, and the error rate of the output signals was measured. For a 300-nm-wide device with active area of 15×15 μm2, correct O/E conversion was confirmed with the error-rate of less than 10-6at the maximum repetition frequency of 120 MHz. The optical energy consumption per pulse was one order of magnitude lower than those of conventional semiconductor photodiodes.
Single flux quantum (SFQ) circuits and optical circuits are expected to be used in next-generation integrated circuits. This study investigates basic technologies for integrating optical circuits with SFQ circuits to exploit the advantages of both technologies. We calculated, designed and evaluated metal-clad waveguides, which can be fabricated by the ISTEC standard process (STD2). Light propagates along an 830-μm-long waveguide with a propagation loss of 16 dB/mm. We also designed and evaluated an optical-electrical (O-E) converter that uses a Josephson junction, which can be fabricated by the same process used to fabricate the SFQ circuits. When an optical signal with a peak power of 1.15 mW at 1.548 μm is input, the Josephson O-E converter generates SFQ pulses.