A terahertz optical asymmetric demultiplexer (TOAD)

A device capable of demultiplexing Tb/s pulse trains that requires less than 1 pJ of switching energy and can be integrated on a chip is presented. The device consists of an optical nonlinear element asymmetrically placed in a short fiber loop. Its switching time is determined by the off-center position of the nonlinear element within the loop, and therefore it can use the strong, slow optical nonlinearities found in semiconductors, which all other fast demultiplexers seek to avoid. The switch's operation at 50 Gb/s is demonstrated, using 600-fJ control pulses.<<ETX>>