Abstract

To keep pace with the demands in optical communications, electro-optic modulators should feature a high extinction ratio, offer a small footprint, and allow for practical detection. Herein, we demonstrate a compact plasmon modulator with a high extinction ratio where a compact modulation region composed of indium tin oxide (ITO) is embedded to the arms of the Mach–Zehnder (M–Z) interferometer. The modulator has a footprint of ${20}\;\unicode{x00B5}{\rm m} \times {12}\;\unicode{x00B5}{\rm m}$ with a modulation region of ${4}\;\unicode{x00B5}{\rm m} \times {0.5}\;\unicode{x00B5}{\rm m}$. The numerical results show that the extinction ratio is 15.2 dB when the electron concentration of ITO is changed ${4} \times {{10}^{20}}\;{{\rm cm}^{- 3}}$. This type of modulator paves the way for future compact optoelectronic integration and has potential application in the fields of optical communication, photodetection, and sensing.

© 2022 Optica Publishing Group

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