Open AccessLow-voltage, high-extinction-ratio, Mach-Zehnder silicon optical modulator for CMOS-compatible integration
Author(s) -
Jianfeng Ding,
Hongtao Chen,
Lin Yang,
Lei Zhang,
Ruiqiang Ji,
Yonghui Tian,
Wenyue Zhu,
Yangyang Lü,
Peng Zhou,
Rui Min
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.20.003209
Subject(s) - extinction ratio , materials science , optics , electro optic modulator , voltage , optoelectronics , optical modulator , silicon , phase modulation , electrical engineering , physics , wavelength , phase noise , engineering
We demonstrate a carrier-depletion Mach-Zehnder silicon optical modulator, which is compatible with CMOS fabrication process and works well at a low driving voltage. This is achieved by the optimization of the coplanar waveguide electrode to reduce the electrical signal transmission loss. At the same time, the velocity and impedance matching are both considered. The 12.5 Gbit/s data transmission experiment of the fabricated device with a 2-mm-long phase shifter is performed. The driving voltages with the swing amplitudes of 1 V and 2 V and the reverse bias voltages of 0.5 V and 0.8 V are applied to the device, respectively. The corresponding extinction ratios are 7.67 and 12.79 dB.