O-band reconfigurable silicon polarization rotator

Silicon waveguides typically exhibit optical anisotropy, which leads to polarization correlation and single-polarization operations. This consequently creates a demand for polarization-control devices. This paper introduces a CMOS-compatible O-band reconfigurable TE/TM polarization rotator comprising two symmetrical polarization rotator–splitters and phase shifters. This configuration enables dynamic conversion of any linear polarization to its quadratic equivalent. Experimental results indicate that the reconfigurable polarization rotator exhibits an insertion loss of less than 1.5 dB. Furthermore, the bandwidth for a polarization extinction ratio beyond 15 dB exceeds 60 nm.