Polarization-independent nonuniform grating couplers on silicon-on-insulator

Grating couplers are proposed for polarization-independent coupling of light between a single-mode fiber and a 220-nm-thick channel waveguide on silicon-on-insulator. The grating couplers have nonuniform grating periods that are composed of the intersection or union of a set of two near-optimal TE- and TM-grating periods. The proposed grating couplers have a coupling efficiency greater than 20% and polarization dependent loss (PDL) lower than 0.5 dB within 3-dB bandwidth in design. For the evaluation of the design concept, a fabricated intersection grating coupler has the PDL of less than 0.8 dB within the wavelength range of 1540 to 1560 nm, and the coupling efficiency is ∼18%.