<div>Integrated optical phased arrays (OPAs) have gained popularity for achieving beam steering with no moving parts and potential high speed and small beam divergence angle. These characteristics are crucial for applications like free-space communication and light detection and ranging (LiDAR), a key component in autonomous driving. Two main aspects that affect the performance of an integrated OPA are discussed: high power handling and large beam steering range.</div><div><br></div><div>High emission power from the OPA is desirable for long range detection applications. Silicon is broadly used in integrated OPA designs as it allows for structures with a more compact footprint. However, its power-handling capability is limited by the two-photon absorption of the material, resulting in higher loss and potential damage at high input power levels. In this work, high power delivery into free space is realized by using a silicon nitride (SiN) and silicon hybrid platform. SiN components are used to direct and split high input power into smaller portions and coupled into silicon components for a more compact emitter array.</div><div><br></div><div>In order to achieve a full 180-degree beam steering range with aliasing-free operation, the pitch of a periodic emitter array is required to be half of the operating wavelength or less. At such a small pitch, evanescent coupling between adjacent emitters causes strong crosstalk. We demonstrate the optical phased array based on uniform half-wavelength spaced grating emitter array. Two-dimensional beam confinement and a record-high aliasing-free beam steering field-of-view of 135 degrees from grating emitter are measured from a 32 channel SiN/Si hybrid OPA. Evanescent coupling between waveguides are suppressed by metamaterial-based <b>e</b>xtreme <b>ski</b>n-<b>d</b>epth (e-skid) waveguides. The e-skid waveguides utilize an alternating air-silicon multi-fin side cladding. The high index contrast of those sub-wavelength ridges provides strong anisotropy, which leads to faster decay of the evanescent wave for transverse electric (TE) input modes, thus limiting evanescent coupling between closely spaced waveguides.</div><div><br></div><div>Furthermore, we extend the concept of the half-wavelength-pitched emitter array to the design of a two-dimensional end-fire OPA. This OPA can potentially achieve 180-degree by 180-degree full-range beam steering with no grating lobes by having a half-wavelength emitter pitch in both dimensions. The design of a broadband 8 by 8 silicon photonics switch based on the half-wavelength-pitched emitter array with low path-dependent loss (PDL) is also discussed.</div>

Les travaux de cette thèse ont porté sur la conception et la réalisation d'un dispositif d'éclairage surfacique à géométrie planaire à base de structures plasmoniques, pour un fonctionnement à 633nm. Ce dispositif sera capable de convertir une lumière incidente cohérente en un faisceau de sortie uniforme sur la surface du dispositif, collimaté et avec un angle prédéfini par rapport au plan du dispositif. Pour réaliser ce dispositif, la solution envisagée est l'utilisation d'un réseau de guides d'onde diélectriques pour répartir la lumière sur la surface, et de chaînes de nano-structures d'argent couplées aux guides, dimensionnées comme des antennes pour réémettre la lumière hors du plan.Les travaux réalisés ont mis en évidence le contrôle du couplage entre le guide d'onde et la chaine de nano-structures d'argent, modulable par plusieurs paramètres dans une gamme comprise entre 10% et 90 % : nombre de particules, dimensions des particules, distance entre le guide et les particules. En jouant sur la période de la chaine, il est possible d'obtenir un rayonnement hors-plan, avec un angle déterminé par la formule des réseaux de diffraction. Des émetteurs élémentaires, composés d’un guide et de chaines de particules, ont été fabriquées en salle blanche et caractérisés sur un banc d’optique guidée à l'aide d'un montage de projection dans le plan de Fourier. Les diagrammes de rayonnement expérimentaux sont en accord avec les simulations. De premiers résultats ont également confirmé expérimentalement la possibilité de moduler le couplage guide-chaine en modifiant les dimensions des particules. Enfin le réseau de guides d'onde a été dimensionné pour une surface d'1 cm² et fabriqué en lithographie par projection. Les pertes linéiques mesurées dans les guides d'onde sont de l'ordre de 5 dB/mm. Plusieurs optimisations peuvent être réalisées pour améliorer la qualité des guides. A partir des données expérimentales obtenues et des simulations de propagation de faisceau, une configuration réaliste de dispositif d’éclairage incluant le nombre et le positionnement des émetteurs sur le réseau de guides a été proposée. L’ensemble des travaux réalisés valident l’approche choisie. / This work has focused on the design and realization of a planar lighting device based on plasmonic structures, for a 633nm operation. This device will be able to convert a coherent incident light into a uniform output beam over the surface of the device, collimated and with a predefined angle with respect to the plane of the device. To achieve this feature, the proposed solution is the use of an array of dielectric waveguides to distribute the light over the surface, and silver nanostructures chains coupled to the waveguides and dimensioned as antennas to retransmit the light out of the plane. The work carried out has highlighted the control of the coupling between the waveguide and the silver nanostructures chain, modulated by several parameters in a range between 10% and 90%: the number of particles, particle size, distance between the guide and the particles. By playing on the period of the chain, it is possible to obtain an out-of-plane radiation, with an angle determined by the diffraction gratings formula. Elementary emitters, consisting of a guide and particle chains, were manufactured in a clean room and characterized on a guided wave optical bench with Fourier plane projection set-up. The experimental radiation patterns are in agreement with the simulations one. First results have also experimentally confirmed the possibility of modulating the waveguide-chain coupling by modifying the dimensions of the particles. Finally, the waveguide network has been dimensioned for an 1 cm² surface and manufactured with projection lithography. The linear losses measured in the waveguides are of the order of 5 dB / mm. Several optimizations can be made to improve the quality of the guides. From the experimental data obtained and the beam propagation simulations, a realistic configuration of the lighting device including the number and positioning of the transmitters on the waveguide network has been proposed. All the works carried out validate the chosen approach.