A 5 × 11.3 Gbit/s MZM driver array with a 6 Vpp output voltage swing and a chip-to-chip bondwire interface in SiGe bipolar technology

A 5-channel driver array IC with a 6 V_pp differential output voltage swing in SiGe bipolar technology is presented. A pair of these arrays is designed to drive a 10-channel Mach-Zehnder modulator (MZM) in a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) of a 10 × 11.3 Gbit/s dense wavelength division multiplexing transmitter. The driver and PIC assembly is optimized for a low cost and a small footprint. Therefore, all required components, including the far-end terminations of the MZMs as well as an energy-efficient concept for flexible MZM biasing, are implemented on the driver IC. The close placement of the driver IC and the PIC with direct chip-to-chip bondwire interconnects reduces the footprint and improves signal quality. The performance of the driver array is demonstrated through measurements on a standalone and an integrated PIC assembly.