Abstract

Second-order nonlinear processes enable a wide range of applications in research, spectroscopy, microscopy, quantum computing and fiber-optic communication. However, the majority of available second-order nonlinear devices rely on bulk nonlinear crystals and free-space optical components. By exploiting the advancements made in integrated optics, CMOS-compatible materials with large second order nonlinearity could enable on chip nonlinear devices at small cost. However, silicon and silicon nitride which are the most used materials in the silicon-on-insulator platform for photonic integrated circuits exhibit negligible second order nonlinearity and alternate materials have to be investigated. We demonstrate here strong SHG from PZT thin films grown on glass substrates. The nonlinear response of the film is calibrated against a BBO crystal. The dominant tensor component is found to be 60 pm/V with the film poled out of plane. This opens potential and avenues for highly efficient on chip nonlinear devices