Numerical study on a compact all-semiconductor-optical-amplifier Sagnac interferometer device

The nonlinear switching effect of an all-semiconductor-optical-amplifier Sa gnac interferometer is numerically investigated. The device, stemming from the conventional nonlinear optical loop mirror made of fiber, has a much mo re compact size and a latency several hundred times smaller than the conven tional ones. Numerical simulations are conducted for the case of cw signal operation. It is found that the nonlinear coupling in the MMIWA and the lat eral field redistribution as well as the amplification of the signal throug h the loop structure contribute together to the nonlinear switching. Beside s investigating the physical mechanism of the device, we vary relevant para meters to evaluate their influences on device performance. The numerical si mulations show good agreement in trend with the experimental results.