ESE Spring Seminar – “Hybrid Nonlinear Photonic Systems”

Integrated photonics is poised to transform communication, computing, and sensing by shrinking complex optical systems onto scalable chip-scale platforms. Realizing this potential, however, requires next-generation photonic systems that move beyond isolated device-level advances toward integrated platforms that are simultaneously low-power, low-noise, reconfigurable, and scalable. Meeting this challenge demands a full-stack understanding of photonic systems across materials, devices, and system-level integration, where deep insight into material behavior, device dynamics, and hybrid integration is essential for unlocking new functionality and performance.

In this talk, I will present my work on hybrid nonlinear photonic systems that combine material innovations, scalable fabrication approaches, and complementary system integration strategies to achieve capabilities beyond those of any single platform. I will show how these systems enable ultra-low-noise chip-scale lasers with surprisingly simple architectures and lay the foundation for more capable, deeply integrated photonic circuits. Finally, I will show how this full-stack principle extends to waveguide-integrated high-speed photodetectors, bridging photonics and electronics. Together, these advances point toward a scalable path to next-generation optoelectronic systems for both classical and quantum technologies.