Ultrafast All-optical Switching Based on Ingaasp Grown by He-plasma-assisted Molecular Beam Epitaxy

We present the first experimental study of the optical properties of HELP InGaAsP (InGaAsP grown by He-plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy) relevant to all-optical switching, and the first demonstration of picosecond switching using this material. We observed an optical response time of 15 ps, a nonlinear index change as large as 0.077, a sharp absorption band edge, and a small absorption tail in HELP InGaAsP. The unique coexistence of ultrafast response, large interband nonlinearity, and small band-tail absorption, never before reported, makes HELP InGaAsP particularly suitable for ultrafast all-optical switching. Additionally, faster response (subpicosecond) was achieved by doping the material with beryllium, and moderate doping (up to ~1018 cm-3) did not significantly alter the absorption edge. We systematically studied the response time variations with doping concentration, annealing temperature, carrier density, and wavelength. We conclude that, (a) Be doping reduces the response