Enabling Tb/s photonic routing: Development of advanced hybrid integrated photonic devices to realize high-speed, all-optical networking

We present recent advances in functional photonic integration and its application for the realization of photonic Tb/s routing. Specifically, we report on the transition from single element to multi-element photonic devices with the fabrication of the first hybrid integrated arrays of optical switches using the silica on-silicon hybrid photonic integration technique. We demonstrate how the enhanced processing power of these components can be exploited to implement key functionalities required in next generation, fully integrated, Tb/s photonic routers.