Coupling Si3N4 waveguide to SOI waveguide using transformation optics

Silicon nitride (Si3N4) planar waveguide platform combined with silicon-on-insulator (SOI) devices offer a whole new generation of system-on-chip applications. Therefore, efficient coupling of an Si3N4 waveguide to an SOI waveguide is essential. We present a coupler to interface a 1.8μm-wide Si3N4 waveguide to a 0.5μm-wide SOI waveguide based on the focusing property of the Luneburg lens. In order to match the refractive indices of the waveguides with the edges of the lens, one side of the lens is flattened with quasi-conformal transformation optics. The designed coupler is implemented by graded photonic crystals. The three-dimensional numerical simulations indicate that the 1.93μm-long coupler has an average coupling loss of 0.13 dB in the C-band.