arXiv subjects

John D. Jost

Publications and source records attributed to John D. Jost.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Unlocking the O-Band: high-power, broadband soliton microcomb

The O-band (1260-1360 nm), located near the minimum of chromatic dispersion of standard single-mode fiber, is the transmission window of major interest and importance for short-reach data-center interconnects. However, full capacity offered by this spectral band is yet to be unlocked, due to limited availability of scalable multi-wavelength, high-power, low noise O-band light engines. While Kerr microcombs in CMOS-compatible silicon nitride resonators provide mutually coherent wavelength channels with precise spacing and chip-scale footprints, their practical deployment in the O-band has been hindered by limited pump laser power, insufficient per-line power and the lack of flat, wideband amplification technologies to uniformly boost multiple coherent carriers. Here we demonstrate a high-power O-band soliton microcomb architecture that overcomes this bottleneck by combining self-injection-locked (SIL) operation in a Silicon Nitride microring with a single-stage bismuth-doped phosphosilicate fiber amplifier designed for wideband, flat-top gain. The SIL microcomb operates with an 834 GHz free spectral range and spans over 1050-1650 nm. The amplifier simultaneously boosts 21 O-band lines across 100 nm to powers exceeding 0 dBm per carrier without gain flattening or external equalization, while preserving low-noise characteristics. We validate each amplified microcomb line as a carrier across the entire O-band using dual-polarization 32 GBaud 64-QAM coherent transmission. This approach establishes a practical route towards high-power, broadband O-band microcomb engines for next-generation data-center interconnects and scalable photonic systems.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2025

A Comb-based Colorless Coherent WDM Transmitter

We propose a comb-based WDM transmitter capable of modulating independent signals to comb lines without demultiplexing them and prove its concept and potential scalability in a WDM transmitter consisting of a Kerr microcomb and a silicon I/Q modulator array.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2025

A 262 TOPS Hyperdimensional Photonic AI Accelerator powered by a Si3N4 microcomb laser

The ever-increasing volume of data has necessitated a new computing paradigm, embodied through Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Large Language Models (LLMs). Digital electronic AI computing systems, however, are gradually reaching their physical plateaus, stimulating extensive research towards next-generation AI accelerators. Photonic Neural Networks (PNNs), with their unique ability to capitalize on the interplay of multiple physical dimensions including time, wavelength, and space, have been brought forward with a credible promise for boosting computational power and energy efficiency in AI processors. In this article, we experimentally demonstrate a novel multidimensional arrayed waveguide grating router (AWGR)-based photonic AI accelerator that can execute tensor multiplications at a record-high total computational power of 262 TOPS, offering a ~24x improvement over the existing waveguide-based optical accelerators. It consists of a 16x16 AWGR that exploits the time-, wavelength- and space- division multiplexing (T-WSDM) for weight and input encoding together with an integrated Si3N4-based frequency comb for multi-wavelength generation. The photonic AI accelerator has been experimentally validated in both Fully-Connected (FC) and Convolutional NN (NNs) models, with the FC and CNN being trained for DDoS attack identification and MNIST classification, respectively. The experimental inference at 32 Gbaud achieved a Cohen's kappa score of 0.867 for DDoS detection and an accuracy of 92.14% for MNIST classification, respectively, closely matching the software performance.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2023

Synthetic-reflection self-injection-locked microcombs

Laser-driven microresonators have enabled chip-integrated light sources with unique properties, including the self-organized formation of ultrashort soliton pulses and frequency combs (microcombs). While poised to impact major photonic applications, such as spectroscopy, sensing and optical data processing, microcombs still necessitate complex scientific equipment to achieve and maintain suitable single-pulse operation. Here, to address this challenge, we demonstrate microresonators with programmable synthetic reflection providing an injection-feedback to the driving laser. When designed appropriately, synthetic reflection enables deterministic access to self-injection-locked microcombs operating exclusively in the single-soliton regime. These results provide a route to easily-operable microcombs for portable sensors, autonomous navigation, or extreme-bandwidth data processing. The novel concept of synthetic reflection may also be generalized to other integrated photonic systems.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2018

Detuning-dependent Properties and Dispersion-induced Instabilities of Temporal Dissipative Kerr Solitons in Optical Microresonators

Temporal-dissipative Kerr solitons are self-localized light pulses sustained in driven nonlinear optical resonators. Their realization in microresonators has enabled compact sources of coherent optical frequency combs as well as the study of dissipative solitons. A key parameter of their dynamics is the effective-detuning of the pump laser to the thermally- and Kerr-shifted cavity resonance. Together with the free spectral range and dispersion, it governs the soliton-pulse duration, as predicted by an approximate analytical solution of the Lugiato-Lefever equation. Yet, a precise experimental verification of this relation was lacking so far. Here, by measuring and controlling the effective-detuning, we establish a new way of stabilizing solitons in microresonators and demonstrate that the measured relation linking soliton width and detuning deviates by less than 1 % from the approximate expression, validating its excellent predictive power. Furthermore, a detuning-dependent enhancement of specific comb lines is revealed, due to linear couplings between mode-families. They cause deviations from the predicted comb power evolution, and induce a detuning-dependent soliton recoil that modifies the pulse repetition-rate, explaining its unexpected dependence on laser-detuning. Finally, we observe that detuning-dependent mode-crossings can destabilize the soliton, leading to an unpredicted soliton breathing regime (oscillations of the pulse) that occurs in a normally-stable regime. Our results test the approximate analytical solutions with an unprecedented degree of accuracy and provide new insights into dissipative-soliton dynamics.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2018

Electrically pumped photonic integrated soliton microcomb

Optical frequency combs have revolutionized frequency metrology and timekeeping, and can be used in a wide range of optical technologies. Advances are under way that allow dramatic miniaturization of optical frequency combs using Kerr nonlinear optical microresonators, where broadband and coherent optical frequency combs can be generated from a continuous wave laser. Such `microcombs', provide a broad bandwidth with low power consumption, unprecedented form factor, wafer scale fabrication compatibility. For future high volume applications, integration and electrical pumping of soliton microcombs is essential. To date, however, microcombs still rely on optical pumping by bulk external laser modules that provide the required coherence, frequency agility and power levels for soliton formation. Electrically-driven, chip-integrated microcombs are inhibited by the high threshold power for soliton formation, typically exceeding the power of integrated silicon based lasers, and the required frequency agility for soliton initiation. Recent advances in high-Q Si3N4 microresonators suggest that electrically driven soliton microcombs are possible. Here we demonstrate an electrically-driven, chip-integrated soliton microcomb by coupling an indium phosphide (III-V) multiple-longitudinal-mode laser diode chip to a high-Q Si3N4 photonic integrated microresonator. We observe that self-injection locking of the laser diode to the microresonator, which is accompanied by a x1000 fold narrowing of the laser linewidth, can simultaneously initiate the formation of dissipative Kerr solitons. By tuning the current, we observe a transition from modulation instability, breather solitons to single soliton states. The system requires less than 1 Watt of electrical power, operates at electronically-detectable sub-100 GHz mode spacing and can fit in a volume of ca. 1cm3.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2017

Inter-mode breather solitons in optical microresonators

The observation of temporal dissipative Kerr solitons in optical microresonators provides, on the applied side, compact sources of coherent optical frequency combs that have already been applied in coherent communications, dual comb spectroscopy and metrology. On a fundamental level, it enables the study of soliton physics in driven nonlinear cavities. Microresonators are commonly multimode and, as a result, inter-mode interactions inherently occur among mode families - a condition referred to as "avoided mode crossings". Avoided mode crossings can cause soliton decay, but can also modify the soliton spectrum, leading to e.g. the formation of dispersive wave and inducing a spectral recoil. Yet, to date, the entailing temporal soliton dynamics from inter-mode interactions has rarely been studied, but is critical to understand regimes of soliton-stability. Here we report the discovery of an inter-mode breather soliton. Such breathing dynamics occurs within a laser detuning range where conventionally stationary dissipative solitons are expected. We demonstrate experimentally the phenomenon in two microresonator platforms (crystalline magnesium fluoride and photonic chip-based silicon nitride microresonators), and theoretically describe the dynamics based on a pair of coupled Lugiato-Lefever equations. We demonstrate experimentally that the breathing is associated with a periodic energy exchange between the soliton and another optical mode family. We further show that inter-mode interactions can be modeled by a response function acting on dissipative solitons. The observation of breathing dynamics in the conventionally stable soliton regime is critical to applications, ranging from low-noise microwave generation, frequency synthesis to spectroscopy. On a fundamental level, our results provide new understandings of the rich dissipative soliton dynamics in multimode nonlinear cavities.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2016

Self-referencing of an on-chip soliton Kerr frequency comb without external broadening

Self-referencing turns pulsed laser systems into self-referenced frequency combs. Such frequency combs allow counting of optical frequencies and have a wide range of applications. The required optical bandwidth to implement self-referencing is typically obtained via nonlinear broadening in optical fibers. Recent advances in the field of Kerr frequency combs have provided a path towards the development of compact frequency comb sources that provide broadband frequency combs, exhibit microwave repetition rates and that are compatible with on-chip photonic integration. These devices have the potential to significantly expand the use of frequency combs. Yet to date self-referencing of such Kerr frequency combs has only been attained by applying conventional, fiber based broadening techniques. Here we demonstrate external broadening-free self-referencing of a Kerr frequency comb. An optical spectrum that spans two-thirds of an octave is directly synthesized from a continuous wave laser-driven silicon nitride microresonator using temporal dissipative Kerr soliton formation and soliton Cherenkov radiation. Using this coherent bandwidth and two continuous wave transfer lasers in a 2f-3f self-referencing scheme, we are able to detect the offset frequency of the soliton Kerr frequency comb. By stabilizing the repetition rate to a radio frequency reference the self-referenced frequency comb is used to count and track the continuous wave pump laser's frequency. This work demonstrates the principal ability of soliton Kerr frequency combs to provide microwave-to-optical clockworks on a chip.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2016

Quantum cascade laser Kerr frequency comb

The mid-infrared (mid-IR) regime (typically the wavelength regime of $λ\sim 2.5-20 \ \mathrm{μm}$) is an important spectral range for spectroscopy as many molecules have their fundamental rotational-vibrational absorption in this band. Recently optical frequency combs based on optical microresonators ("Kerr" combs) at the onset of the mid-IR region have been generated using crystalline resonators and integrated planar silicon micro-resonators. Here we extend for the first time Kerr combs deep into the mid-IR i.e. the 'molecular fingerprint' region. This is achieved by combining an ultra high quality (Q) factor mid-IR microresonator based on crystalline $\mathrm{MgF_{2}}$ with the quantum cascade laser (QCL) technology. Using a tapered chalgogenide (ChG) fiber and a QCL continuous wave pump laser, frequency combs at $λ\sim 4.4\ \mathrm{μm}$ (i.e. 2270cm$^{-1}$) are generated, that span over 600nm (i.e. 300cm$^{-1}$) in bandwidth, with a mode spacing of 14.3GHz (0.5cm$^{-1}$), corresponding to more than 700 comb lines. Numerical simulations of the Kerr comb formation and the resonator dispersion predict that even larger bandwidth and coherent operation in the soliton regime may be achieved by dispersion engineering of the crystalline microresonator. The combination of ultra-high Q crystalline microresonators and CW QCL sources is a promising platform for broadband, compact sources of frequency combs in the mid-IR, that provides a route to compact mid-IR spectrometers.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2015

Photonic Damascene Process for Integrated High-Q Microresonator Based Nonlinear Photonics

High confinement, integrated silicon nitride (SiN) waveguides have recently emerged as attractive platform for on-chip nonlinear optical devices. The fabrication of high-Q SiN microresonators with anomalous group velocity dispersion (GVD) has enabled broadband nonlinear optical frequency comb generation. Such frequency combs have been successfully applied in coherent communication and ultrashort pulse generation. However, the reliable fabrication of high confinement waveguides from stoichiometric, high stress SiN remains challenging. Here we present a novel photonic Damascene fabrication process enabling the use of substrate topography for stress control and thin film crack prevention. With close to unity sample yield we fabricate microresonators with $1.35\,μ\mathrm{m}$ thick waveguides and optical Q factors of $3.7\times10^{6}$ and demonstrate single temporal dissipative Kerr soliton (DKS) based coherent optical frequency comb generation. Our newly developed process is interesting also for other material platforms, photonic integration and mid infrared Kerr comb generation.

physics.optics↗