Design and Simulation of Optical Waveguide Digital Adjustable Delay Lines Based on Optical Switches and Archimedean Spiral Structures

In the field of modern optical communication, radar signal processing and optical sensors, true time delay technology, as a key means of signal processing, can achieve the accurate control of the time delay of optical signals. This study presents a novel design that integrates a 2 × 2 Multi-Mode Interference (MMI) structure with a Mach–Zehnder modulator on a silicon nitride–lithium niobate (SiN-LiNbO3) heterogeneous integrated optical platform. This configuration enables the selective interruption of optical wave paths. The upper path passes through an ultralow-loss Archimedes’ spiral waveguide delay line made of silicon nitride, where the five spiral structures provide delays of 10 ps, 20 ps, 40 ps, 80 ps, and 160 ps, respectively. In contrast, the lower path is straight through, without introducing an additional delay. By applying an electrical voltage, the state of the SiN-LiNbO3 switch can be altered, facilitating the switching and reconfiguration of optical paths and ultimately enabling the combination of various delay values. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed optical true delay line achieves a discrete, adjustable delay ranging from 10 ps to 310 ps with a step size of 10 ps. The delay loss is less than 0.013 dB/ps, the response speed reaches the order of ns, and the 3 dB-EO bandwidth is broader than 67 GHz. In comparison to other optical switches optical true delay lines in terms of the parameters of delay range, minimum adjustable delay, and delay loss, the proposed optical waveguide digital adjustable true delay line, which is based on an optical switch and an Archimedes’ spiral structure, has outstanding advantages in response speed and delay loss.