Low insertion loss and low dispersion penalty InGaAsP quantum-well high-speed electroabsorption modulator for 40-Gb/s very-short-reach, long-reach, and long-haul applications

• Published in: Journal of lightwave technology Vol. 20; no. 12; pp. 2052 - 2056
• Main Authors: Won-Jin Choi, Bond, A.E., Jongwoo Kim, Jiaming Zhang, Jambunathan, R., Foulk, H., O'Brien, S., Van Norman, J., Vandegrift, D., Wanamaker, C., Shakespeare, J., He Cao
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY IEEE 01.12.2002; Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers; The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Circuit properties; Dispersions; Electric, optical and optoelectronic circuits; Electroabsorption modulators; Electronics; Exact sciences and technology; Extinction ratio; High speed; High speed optical techniques; Indium phosphide; Insertion loss; Integrated optoelectronics. Optoelectronic circuits; Modulation; Modulators; Noise levels; Optical and optoelectronic circuits; Optical losses; Optical modulation; Optical signal processing; Quantum well devices; Quantum wells; Radio frequency; Electroabsorption modulator; Binary compound; Gallium arsenides; Optical telecommunication; Performance characteristic; Multiple quantum well; Indium phosphide; Quaternary compound; Optical transmission; Dispersion penalty; Manufacturing process; electroabsorption modulators (EAMs); Insertion loss; multiple quantum well (MQW); Optical modulation; Light dispersion
• ISSN: 0733-8724; 1558-2213
• DOI: 10.1109/JLT.2002.806756

We present a metal-organic-chemical-vapor-deposition-grown low-optical-insertion-loss InGaAsP/InP multiple-quantum-well electroabsorption modulator (EAM), suitable for both nonreturn-to-zero (NRZ) and return-to-zero (RZ) applications. The EAM exhibits a dynamic (RF) extinction ratio of 11.5 dB at 1550 nm for 3 Vp-p drive under 40-Gb/s modulation. The optical insertion loss of the modulator in the on-state is -5.2 dB at 1550 nm. In addition, the EAM also exhibits a 3-dB small-signal response (S21) of greater than 38 GHz, allowing it to be used in both 40-Gb/s NRZ and 10-Gb/s RZ applications. The dispersion penalty at 40 Gb/s is measured to be 1.2 dB over /spl plusmn/40 ps/nm of chromatic dispersion. Finally, we demonstrate 40-Gb/s transmission performance over 85 km and 700 km.