Silicon-Based Optoelectronic Integrated Optical Phased Array

Optical phased array (OPA) can realize beam scanning in space with no need of mechanical rotating. It has a universal application prospect in many fields, such as laser ranging and free-space optical communications. Silicon-based optoelectronic integration technology can integrate large scale optical devices on the chip and fully compatible with CMOS integrated circuit technology. OPA based on this technology has the characteristics of fast scanning speed, small volume, low cost and low power consumption. At present, the maximum of scan range of OPA fabricated by silicon-based optoelectronic integration technology is 80 degrees in horizontal direction and 36 degrees in vertical direction. We briefly introduce the scanning principle of OPA. The newest research results at home and abroad are summarized and analyzed. Finally, the key issues that need to be solved are discussed and some solutions to improve performance are proposed.