An analysis of the performance of Franz-Keldysh electroabsorption waveguide modulators

Author

Chin, Mee Koy

Author_Institution

Sch. of Electr. & Electron. Eng., Nanyang Technol. Univ., Singapore

Volume

7

Issue

3

fYear

1995

fDate

3/1/1995 12:00:00 AM

Firstpage

309

Lastpage

311

Abstract

We present an analysis of the performance limits of the Franz-Keldysh effect (FKE) waveguide modulators, based on the optimization of the material figures of merit related to device performance. This leads to a unique design approach in which the detuning energy and the thickness of the active material determine the required drive voltage and the available bandwidth. A large-core waveguide is used to minimize insertion loss. The overall performance is compared with a similar waveguide modulator based on the quantum confined Stark effect (QCSE). The conclusion is that, because of the relatively small /spl Delta//spl alpha/ available from Franz-Keldysh effect, the power-bandwidth ratio of the optimized FKE modulator is about an order of magnitude poorer than the optimized QCSE modulator.<>

Keywords

electro-optical modulation; electroabsorption; optical design techniques; optical losses; optical waveguide theory; optical waveguides; optimisation; quantum confined Stark effect; tuning; Franz-Keldysh effect; Franz-Keldysh electroabsorption waveguide modulators; active material thickness; available bandwidth; design approach; detuning energy; device performance; drive voltage; insertion loss; large-core waveguide; material figures of merit; optimization; optimized QCSE modulator; performance limits; power-bandwidth ratio; quantum confined Stark effect; Absorption; Bandwidth; Digital modulation; Insertion loss; Optical modulation; Optical waveguides; Performance analysis; Propagation losses; Semiconductor waveguides; Voltage;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Photonics Technology Letters, IEEE

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

1041-1135

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/68.372755

Filename

372755