The aim of the course is to provide introductory knowledge and basic understanding of the field of Silicon Photonics. The course will present an introduction to guided waves, optical modes, and propagation characteristics of photonic circuits, using Silicon Technology by way of example.
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
What is Silicon Photonics? Why is it required? What are the key technological metrics? Applications
Fundamentals of guided waves.
Modes of planar waveguides, propagation constants, effective index, mode profiles.
Modes of 2‐dimensional waveguides, basic waveguides structures, complex refractive index.
Coupling to waveguides: grating couplers; butt coupling, mode transformers, inverted tapers.
Waveguides loss mechanisms: absorption, scattering, the plasma dispersion effect and the effect of free carriers, the thermo‐optic effect.
Device preparation and characterisation: facets, anti‐reflection coatings, waveguide loss measurements. The cut‐back method, the Fabry‐Perot method, scattered light measurement.
Waveguide based devices: the Mach Zehnder interferometer, the ring resonator, waveguide‐waveguide couplers, waveguide bends, modulators, variable optical attenuators, multiplexers.
Polarisation issues: polarisation independence, polarisation dependent loss, polarisation diversity schemes.
Integration issues: advantages and disadvantages of integration, photonic device integration, photonic‐electronic integration, power and power density issues on‐chip.
Advanced waveguides structures; Photonic crystals, slot waveguides, mid infrared waveguides.
A fabrication example of a Mach‐Zehnder interferometer: process flow for fabrication, photolithography, etching, doping, deposition.
| Activity | Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Lecture | Lectures and classroom discussion | 28 |
| Tutorial | Problems workshops | 6 |
| Specialist Lab | Laboratory observations | 2 |
| Method | Hours | Percentage contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Two work sheets | - | 25% |
| Exam | 2 hours | 75% |
Referral Method: By examination, with the original coursework mark being carried forward
Optical fibre sensor technology is playing an increasing role in modern-day life with a range of applications emerging in areas spanning civil engineering, defence and the life sciences. This module focuses on a key area of ORC expertise that has developed in parallel with the other application specific areas of optical communications and fibre laser technologies.
This module is compulsory for students on the MSc Optical Fibre Technologies. The module builds on the base-concepts of optical fibre technologies (OPTO6008 and OPTO6009) taught in Semester 1, and will teach the key concepts of distributed and point sensing systems. A substantial part of the module will focus on existing and emerging applications, and on the markets of optical fibre sensor technology. The skills and knowledge acquired during this module will be essential for students wishing to take a final project focusing specifically on optical fibre sensor technologies in Semester 3.
The aim of the course is to provide in-depth description of the two main strands of optical fibre sensor technology together with their key application areas to provide students with a solid foundation and understanding of the field. Following an introduction and overview of the field of optical sensors, and the main sensing principles and parameters of interest, the key operating principles, and key properties of point and distributed sensing technologies will be taught. Being a strongly application focused field of optical fibre technology, several examples of applications will be presented, with specific reference to real-world examples, to give students a better overview and understanding of where optical fibre sensors currently are being used, and where the technology potentially could find application in the future.
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Teaching methods include
The course consists of 2 lectures per week plus a bi-weekly workshop/surgery. Printed lecture notes and self-study packs will be provided for parts of the course.
Learning activities include
Attending lectures, problems classes, laboratory demonstrations, and exam preparation.
| Activity | Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 26 | |
| Tutorial | 10 |
| Method | Hours | Percentage contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Assignments and problem sheets, Fortnightly, and typically 2 pages | - | 20% |
| Exam | 2.5 hours hours | 80% |
Referral Method: By examination
Knowledge of basic principles of fibre optics will make up a significant part of the necessary skill base for students on the Optical Fibre Technologies MSc. In-depth knowledge of optical fibres as the light guiding medium is vital for understanding most other areas of optical fibre technology (telecommunications, sensors), and as support for the final project work. This module will describe four core areas – the key concepts of light propagation in optical fibre waveguides, various types of optical fibres and how they work, the key concepts of optical fibre fabrication and characterisation, together with the most common fibre components, thus making a foundational introduction for the rest of the modules in the MSc programme.
This module is introductory, and its material is intended to introduce the field of fibre optics to relative newcomers. The skills and knowledge acquired during this course will form the foundation for much of the material taught in the Semester 2 courses, and for the final projects in Semester 3 of the MSc programme.
The aim of the module is to provide an introduction to passive optical fibre technology. Fundamentals of propagation of light through optical fibres would be introduced first. The operating principles and key properties of a variety of optical fibres will be covered followed by technologies relating to fibre fabrication and fibre characterisation. Finally, fibre components and their conceptual operation will be introduced and two key application areas of optical fibre technology – telecommunications and optical sensors - will be briefly introduced.
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Part 1: Light propagation through optical fibres
Overview of optical fibre technologies.
Maxwell’s equations, the wave equation, and dispersion relations applied to fibre geometries.
Optical fields in solid-core optical fibres (guided modes, single and multi-mode guidance). Signal guiding in ‘holey’ fibres.
Part 2: Fibre types
Silica fibre basics (germanosilicate, phosphosilicate and aluminosilicate) – single-mode and multimode.
Specialty silica fibres (polarisation-maintaining, highly-nonlinear, polarising, ...). Non-silica fibre basics (soft-glasses (tellurite, chalcogenide, fluoride), bismuth-oxide, polymers, etc.).
Photonic bandgap fibres (solid core, hollow-core).
Part 3: Fibre fabrication and characterisation
Fabrication technology of silica-based fibres.
Fabrication technology of non-silica-based fibres.
Methods for characterising fibres.
Fibre reliability (governing standards, standards for testing, maximum power handling capability, fibre fuse, etc.).
Characterisation of fibre glass material.
Part 4: Fibre components and Introduction to applications
Fibre components (couplers, isolators, circulators, thin film filters, Bragg gratings, long- period gratings, poled fibres, etc.).
Introduction to optical fibre telecommunications.
Introduction to optical fibre sensors.
Teaching methods include
The course consists of 2 lectures per week plus a bi-weekly workshop/surgery. Printed lecture notes and self-study packs will be provided for parts of the course.
Learning activities include
Attending lectures, problems classes, and exam preparation
| Activity | Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 26 | |
| Tutorial | 10 |
| Method | Hours | Percentage contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Fortnightly, and typically 2 pages | - | 20% |
| - | % | |
| Exam | 2.5 hours hours | 80% |
Referral Method: By examination
Communications is arguably the most widespread application of fibre optics, and naturally forms an essential part of an MSc Programme specialising on fibre technologies. This module will cover topics ranging from the more general (aimed at students with a background that is different to engineering) to more specialised issues relating to modern communication systems. The module starts with an introduction to the history of optical communications and the evolution of optical communication systems. It covers aspects of optical networking, and looks in detail in the modulation and multiplexing techniques used in modern systems. Key optical components for communications are presented and their main characteristics are analysed, allowing the students to appreciate what features can make a difference in the performance. An introduction to wave propagation in optical fibres is presented next, with emphasis on the effects of fibre characteristics on fast data signals. The final part of the main body of the module covers topics that are relevant either to modern communication systems or that emerge from recent research in the field. It includes optical nonlinearities and their implications both in transmission and signal processing, as well as electronic signal processing and its ever-increasing role in optical communications.
Furthermore, the module includes provision for four lectures on passive optical networks to be given by an invited lecturer. These lectures cover specialised networking topics of interest to next generation low-cost telecommunication system technologies.
This module builds directly on the fundamental fibre technology modules (OPTO6008 and OPTO6009) taught in Semester 1, and together the three modules provides in-depth knowledge of the core concepts of advanced telecommunication systems and the state-of-the-art of telecommunication systems technologies.
This module series could also be of interest to students studying towards an MSc in Wireless Communications.
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
| Method | Hours | Percentage contribution |
|---|
Referral Method: By examination
Active optical fibres, including lasers and amplifiers, form a central part of optical fibre technologies today. This module will cover this important area of optical fibre technology covering the fundamental aspects of active fibre technologies including optical fibre amplifiers and the basics of fibre lasers.
This module will give a clear understanding of the operating principles of fibre lasers and amplifiers both in the linear and nonlinear regimes. It will make use of the initial description of passive fibres given in OPTO6008, and combine this with understanding of the basic properties of laser materials to give a firm grounding in active and nonlinear fibre optics. The skills and knowledge acquired during this course will form the foundation for much of the material taught in the Semester 2 courses, and for the final projects in Semester 3 of the MSc programme.
The aim of this module is to introduce the principles of operation and design of fibre amplifiers and the most common types of fibre lasers. Students will learn the basics of the interaction of light (photons) with matter in the context of absorption and the generation of light via spontaneous and stimulated emission. They will also learn the key concepts of how these transitions relate to the operation of optical fibre lasers and amplifiers. The nonlinear interactions induced by propagating optical beams in an optical fibre will be outlined together with an introduction to the relevant background theory. A detailed overview on various types of linear and nonlinear amplifiers, including their transient dynamics, will also be taught.
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Transition cross sections.
Blackbody radiation.
Absorption, spontaneous emission and stimulated emission.
Rare-earth spectroscopy.
4f-4f transition of lanthanides.
Absorption and emission cross sections of rare-earth ions.
Host dependent transition cross sections.
Linewidth broadening and transition lineshapes.
Rate equations for optical amplification.
Energy levels of rare-earth ions.
Three-level system.
Four-level system.
Optical fibre lasers and amplifiers.
Transient dynamics.
CW lasers.
Pulsed lasers.
Nonlinear interactions in fibres.
Self-phase modulation.
Modulation instability.
Stimulated Raman scattering.
Stimulated Brillouin scattering.
Nonlinear amplifiers.
Teaching methods include
Lectures, tutorials and laboratory visits.
Learning activities include
Lectures, coursework assignments, laboratory visits, and exam preparation
| Activity | Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 36 |
| Method | Hours | Percentage contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Assignments and problem sheets | - | 20% |
| Exam | 2.5 hours hours | 80% |
Referral Method: By examination
| Method | Hours | Percentage contribution |
|---|
Referral Method:
Aims:
Cellular telephone and local wireless data communications applications have fuelled an explosive demand for highly integrated radio transceiver functions. The architectures used and the design techniques used depart significantly from the classical matched impedance building block approach, and the whole radio system as well as the target technology must be considered in the design choices. This course aims to bring together the radio system and transistor level designers’ views in the problem of low cost high performance radio design.
This module aims to bring together the system, circuit and technology issues to be faced when realising a complete wireless transceiver function in silicon for mass market use.
Popular architectures will be compared, (egsuperhetvs direct conversion) in terms of the IC implementation issues and the specifications of the building blocks required. Digitising receiver architectures for Software Defined Radio will be introduced. The question of which technology (principally BICMOS vs CMOS) is most suited will be discussed. The course will then consider the transistor level design of typical cells in an integrated rather than matched environment. This will include LNA, Up and Down Mixers, IF and filtering, A/D interfaces, VCOs and PLLs
Pre-Requisite Knowledge:
• Bipolar and MOS transistor construction and physics
• Basic transistor linear circuits
• DC and AC network analysis skills
• Elementary analogue IC design
• Elementary knowledge of matching and S-parameter methods
• Basic knowledge of filter theory
• Basic knowledge of classical radio systems
• Basic knowledge of modulation schemes
• Basic knowledge of system level noise analysis
• Familiarity with circuit simulation CAD skills (SPICE)
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
| Activity | Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 32 | |
| Tutorial | 4 |
| Method | Hours | Percentage contribution |
|---|---|---|
| System study | - | 25% |
| Exam | 2 hours | 75% |
Referral Method: By examination
The individual project gives students the opportunity to gain both detailed knowledge and practical experience in a more focussed area than generally possible elsewhere in their degree programme. Most projects are in the nature of a challenging engineering exercise in which there is scope for flair and originality. Typically, the result of the project will be some demonstrable software and/or hardware together with the supporting final report.
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
The topics covered on a student's project will depend on their programme of study and choice of project.
| Activity | Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Lecture | Project briefings, covering: project allocation, academic integrity, information skills, careers, project management, risk management, costing, design for manufacture, evaluation, ethics, and project report writing. | 12 |
| Project supervision | Weekly supervision meetings with project supervisor | 12 |
| Method | Hours | Percentage contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Progress Report | - | 10% |
| Final Report | - | 80% |
| Viva | - | 10% |
Referral Method: By re-write of the project report and re-viva (the original progress report mark will be carried forward)
This project is a group based design project where the cohort is divided into teams and each team is required to complete a specific design task based around FPGAs or Embedded Processors. The aim of this course is to provide a mechanism for the System on Chip students to be able to move beyond computer simulation into the lab and actually make circuits for practical applications.
The project teams will also have to give several presentations and a final report with both group and individual elements.
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
1. FPGA design
2. Embedded Processor Implementation
3. Sensor Integration
4. System design and testing
5. Presentation and management
| Activity | Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Lecture | There will be 1 hour lecture scheduled per week, mainly for administrative and progress updates | 12 |
| Specialist Lab | Scheduled labs and self study labs are required for the SOC/FPGA design project | 96 |
| Seminar | There will be three 2 hour progress seminars during the semester | 6 |
Laboratory sessions are scheduled in the labs on level 2 of the Zepler building
Length of each session: 3 hours
Number of sessions completed by each student: 12
Max number of students per session: unlimited
Demonstrator:student ratio: 1:12
Preferred teaching weeks: 1 to 12
| Method | Hours | Percentage contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Project proposal | - | 20% |
| Project prototype and initial evaluation | - | 30% |
| Final presentation and demonstration | - | 40% |
| Project report | - | 10% |
Referral Method: By set coursework assignment(s)
To provide students with hands-on experience of the complete integrated circuit design process from specification through to fruition.
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to:
| Activity | Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 12 | |
| Computer Lab | 60 |
| Method | Hours | Percentage contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Milestone Submissions | - | 20% |
| Design Submission | - | 75% |
| Individual Reflection | - | 5% |
Referral Method: By set coursework assignment(s)