Integrated optics Bragg grating ring resonators with Q-factor on gigascale

Abstract

In this paper we propose a new optical ring resonator with a very high Q-factor, to be used as a basic element in a wide range of physics and engineering applications. We theoretically demonstrate that in large size conventional ring resonators, a value of the Q-factor higher than 109 is achievable by exploiting the band-edge resonances in a waveguiding long period Bragg grating closed loop, excited through a bus waveguide. The dispersion introduced by the Bragg grating is responsible for a reduction in the band edge resonance linewidth, which is inversely proportional to the square of the number of periods of the grating, thus allowing the overall Q-factor to be enhanced. Numerical results show a substantial improvement in the Q-factor, giving a number of order of magnitude higher than that of a conventional large size ring resonator.