Photonics
introduction
We live in the era of Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
The cradle of Solid State Electronics
Transistors put together: integrated circuits
Moore’s Law: the number of transistors on a chip doubles every 18 months
,“Moore” and “More than Moore”
Intel 4004(1971)
2300 transistors
16 pins
Intel Core i7 quad core (2013)
1400 million transistors
1155 pins
While electronics is advancing at high speed a “quiet revolution” is happening
Wavelength: distance between peaks
Monochromatic: only 1 wavelength
Coherent: pieken lopen gelijk
,Basic components of an early laser
Gas: laser active medium
Electrical coil: pump
Mirrors: bounce photons back and forward
Early day lasers were a physicist’s dream, but an engineer’s nightmare
Lasers had a pure and tuneable spectrum
Lasers had unprecedented optical intensity
But they were unpractical and power hungry
III-V semiconductor materials and epitaxial growth techniques lead to small
laser diodes
, Today laser diodes come in almost all wavelengths, sizes and powers
Optical information carriers
introduction
We live in the era of Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
The cradle of Solid State Electronics
Transistors put together: integrated circuits
Moore’s Law: the number of transistors on a chip doubles every 18 months
,“Moore” and “More than Moore”
Intel 4004(1971)
2300 transistors
16 pins
Intel Core i7 quad core (2013)
1400 million transistors
1155 pins
While electronics is advancing at high speed a “quiet revolution” is happening
Wavelength: distance between peaks
Monochromatic: only 1 wavelength
Coherent: pieken lopen gelijk
,Basic components of an early laser
Gas: laser active medium
Electrical coil: pump
Mirrors: bounce photons back and forward
Early day lasers were a physicist’s dream, but an engineer’s nightmare
Lasers had a pure and tuneable spectrum
Lasers had unprecedented optical intensity
But they were unpractical and power hungry
III-V semiconductor materials and epitaxial growth techniques lead to small
laser diodes
, Today laser diodes come in almost all wavelengths, sizes and powers
Optical information carriers
