Machine learning optimization of Surface-Normal optical modulators for SWIR Time-of-Flight 3-D camera

Simone Bianconi, Skyler Wheaton, Min Su Park, Iman Hassani Nia, Hooman Mohseni*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

Surface-normal optical modulators based on multiple quantum wells are attractive for an increasing number of applications, including photonic links such as on-chip optical interconnects. The design of such structures however is still based on intuition and experience rather than on a quantitative assessment of the device and system performance, due to the extreme complexity of the device behavior and the large number of design parameters involved. We developed a method for the systematic optimization of the modulator design, using a combination of analytical modeling and supervised machine learning. The global optimization is driven by an evolutionary algorithm, and the robustness of the final results is evaluated using variance-based sensitivity analysis. The optimization algorithm was tested on the case of time-of-flight three-dimensional camera (ranging) application, yielding two novel optimized designs which allow for a considerable improvement of the depth resolution of the system. Finally, we propose a figure of merit for comparing the modulation efficiency of surface-normal modulators.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number8201108
JournalIEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics
Volume24
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 1 2018

Funding

Manuscript received February 8, 2018; revised June 5, 2018; accepted July 4, 2018. Date of publication July 13, 2018; date of current version July 19, 2018. This work was supported in part by Army Research Office Award #W911NF-16-1-0458 and #W911NF-11-1-0390, and in part by a W. M. Keck Foundation Science and Engineering Grant. (Corresponding author: Hooman Mohseni.) The authors are with the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208 USA (e-mail:, [email protected]; [email protected]. edu; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]). The authors acknowledge the computational resources and staff contributions provided by the Quest high performance computing facility at Northwestern University, which is jointly supported by the Office of the Provost, the Office for Research, and Northwestern University Information Technology.

Keywords

  • 3D imaging
  • Electrooptic modulation
  • Infrared imaging
  • integrated optoelectronics
  • quantum well devices

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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