Chi 3 dispersion in planar tantalum pentoxide waveguides in the telecommunications window

Abstract

We report on the dispersion of the third-order nonlinear susceptibility (${\chi }^{\left(3\right)}$ or “Chi 3”) in planar ${\mathrm{Ta}}_2{\mathrm{O}}_5$ waveguides in the telecommunications spectral window. We utilize the observation of third-harmonic generation under ultrashort pulsed excitation as a reference-free characterization method of ${\chi }^{\left(3\right)}$ and obtain a large nonlinear coefficient, $2\times {10}^{-13}\mathrm{esu}$, at $1550\mathrm{nm}$. Our observation of efficient third-harmonic generation in ${\mathrm{Ta}}_2{\mathrm{O}}_5$ waveguides in the telecoms window reveals the potential of this material system in high-speed integrated nonlinear optical switches.

© 2009 Optical Society of America