Graduation Year
2020
Document Type
Open Access Senior Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Physics
Reader 1
Gordon Stecklein
Reader 2
Lewis Johnson
Reader 3
David Masiello
Terms of Use & License Information
Abstract
Optical fibers have multiple advantages over conventional electrical connections, such as lower energy losses and higher bandwidth. To use optics for chip-to-chip communication, electro-optic (EO) modulators need to be scaled down to be incorporated on integrated circuits. This size reduction has been accomplished using plasmonic-organic hybrid (POH) waveguides, which make use of nonlinear organic EO materials and surface plasmon polaritons to achieve light modulation in devices with lengths on the micron scale. As these devices are just starting to be developed, there are many avenues for their potential optimization. In order to streamline and reduce the cost of the optimization process, a computational model of these devices is being developed. Using this model, researchers will be able to experiment with varying device parameters, such as geometry, material composition, and cladding layers and see how device performance is affected in order to inform the fabrication of actual test devices. This thesis explores the Discrete Dipole Approximation (DDA) as a potential software for this computational model. To do so, a simplified model of a POH waveguide was created to validate whether or not DDA produces physically expected results. Four separate simulations using this simplified model produce results that are consistent with physical expectations. Additional simulations can provide further confirmation of these initial results.
Recommended Citation
Michel, Marcus, "Electrodynamics Modeling of Plasmonic-Organic Hybrid Waveguides" (2020). Pomona Senior Theses. 225.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/pomona_theses/225
