Mode-selective acousto-electric modulation of phonons in a silicon photonic platform

Abstract

Acousto-electric (AE) interactions enable electrical control of acoustic propagation through piezoelectric media. Bringing AE control onto integrated photonic platforms provides a powerful on-chip control mechanism to reconfigure both the acoustic propagation through piezoelectric media. Bringing AE control onto integrated photonic platforms provides a powerful on-chip control mechanism to reconfigure both the acoustic delay line response and the effective photon-phonon interaction by electrically tuning the phonon propagation. Here we report a mode-selective AE modulation effect in a scalable aluminum nitride on silicon-on-insulator (AlN-on-SOI) platform. An applied DC field is seen to modulate the phonon dissipation via changes in carrier concentration in a mode-selective fashion, producing up to 20 dB forward transmission suppression of non-fundamental modes within an acoustic delay line while maintaining the fundamental Rayleigh mode, a phenomenon not captured by conventional AE treatments. To probe these dynamics, we integrate an optical waveguide along the acoustic delay line, providing a broadband, non-destructive interface between the acoustic and optical domains. Leveraging both this optical interface and the underlying mode selectivity, we demonstrate proof-of-concept multi-domain transduction and Rayleigh-mode filtering on this hybrid platform, outlining a scalable path toward electrically reconfigurable mode engineering and microwave-photonic functionality.

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Cite

BibTeX RIS

BibTeX

@misc{yuan2026modeselective,
  title = {{Mode-selective acousto-electric modulation of phonons in a silicon photonic platform}},
  author = {Ruoyu Yuan and Yishu Zhou and Matthew J. Storey and Ryan O. Behunin and Haotian Cheng and Betul Sen and Andrew L. Starbuck and Douglas C. Trotter and Andrew L. Leenheer and Matt Eichenfield and Nils T. Otterstrom and Peter T. Rakich},
  howpublished = {arXiv},
  year = {2026},
  month = sep,
  doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2609.36198},
  eprint = {2609.36198},
  archivePrefix = {arXiv},
  url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.36198},
}

RIS

TY  - UNPB
TI  - Mode-selective acousto-electric modulation of phonons in a silicon photonic platform
AU  - Ruoyu Yuan
AU  - Yishu Zhou
AU  - Matthew J. Storey
AU  - Ryan O. Behunin
AU  - Haotian Cheng
AU  - Betul Sen
AU  - Andrew L. Starbuck
AU  - Douglas C. Trotter
AU  - Andrew L. Leenheer
AU  - Matt Eichenfield
AU  - Nils T. Otterstrom
AU  - Peter T. Rakich
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/28
PB  - arXiv
DO  - 10.48550/arxiv.2609.36198
UR  - https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.36198
AB  - Acousto-electric (AE) interactions enable electrical control of acoustic propagation through piezoelectric media. Bringing AE control onto integrated photonic platforms provides a powerful on-chip control mechanism to reconfigure both the acoustic propagation through piezoelectric media. Bringing AE control onto integrated photonic platforms provides a powerful on-chip control mechanism to reconfigure both the acoustic delay line response and the effective photon-phonon interaction by electrically tuning the phonon propagation. Here we report a mode-selective AE modulation effect in a scalable aluminum nitride on silicon-on-insulator (AlN-on-SOI) platform. An applied DC field is seen to modulate the phonon dissipation via changes in carrier concentration in a mode-selective fashion, producing up to 20 dB forward transmission suppression of non-fundamental modes within an acoustic delay line while maintaining the fundamental Rayleigh mode, a phenomenon not captured by conventional AE treatments. To probe these dynamics, we integrate an optical waveguide along the acoustic delay line, providing a broadband, non-destructive interface between the acoustic and optical domains. Leveraging both this optical interface and the underlying mode selectivity, we demonstrate proof-of-concept multi-domain transduction and Rayleigh-mode filtering on this hybrid platform, outlining a scalable path toward electrically reconfigurable mode engineering and microwave-photonic functionality.
ER  -

Abstract

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