Integrated Al$_2$ O$_3$:Er$^{3+}$ Zero-Loss Optical Amplifier and Power Splitter With 40-nm Bandwidth

A combined planar lossless optical amplifier and 1 × 2 power splitter device has been realized in Al2O3:Er3+ on silicon. Net internal gain was measured over a wavelength range of 40 nm across the complete telecom C-band (1525-1565 nm). Calculations predict net gain in a combined amplifier and 1 × 4 power splitter device over the same wavelength range for a total injected pump power as low as 30 mW.