US 11,454,856 B2 · Optical driver with active boost

Abstract

The present disclosure provide for active boost in an electrical driver via a frequency comparator, configured to determine operational characteristics of an electrical circuit connected to an optical modulator based on a frequency difference between a ring oscillator and the clock signal; an electrical driver configured to drive a phase shift of a first optical signal carried on a first arm relative to a second optical signal carried on a second arm of an optical modulator, the electrical driver comprising: a first signal pathway, connected to the first arm of the optical modulator, wherein the first signal pathway includes: an adjustable gain inverter, electrically connected to first and second nodes; a fixed gain inverter, electrically connected to the first and second nodes; an inductor electrically connected between the second node and a third node; and a non-inverting amplifier connected between the third node and the first node.

Claims20

Dependent claims

An electrical integrated circuit, comprising:

a frequency comparator, connected to a ring oscillator and an external reference clock signal, configured to determine operational characteristics of an electrical circuit connected to an optical modulator based on a frequency difference between the ring oscillator and the external reference clock signal;
an electrical driver connected with the optical modulator and configured to drive a phase shift of a first optical signal carried on a first arm of the optical modulator relative to a second optical signal carried on a second arm of the optical modulator, the electrical driver comprising:
a first signal pathway, connected to the first arm of the optical modulator, wherein the first signal pathway includes:
a first adjustable gain inverter, electrically connected to a first node and a second node on the first signal pathway;
a first fixed gain inverter, electrically connected to the first node and the second node;
a first inductor electrically connected between the second node and a third node on the first signal pathway;
and
a first non-inverting amplifier connected between the third node and the first node.

5 more elements

A driver circuit, comprising:

a plurality of buffers arranged in series, wherein a given buffer of the plurality of buffers is configured to accept a first input and a second input, and to produce a first output and a second output, and wherein each buffer of the plurality of buffers, comprises:
a first adjustable gain inverter electrically connected to a first input node that is configured to receive the first input and to a first intermediate node;
a first fixed gain inverter that is electrically connected in parallel with the first adjustable gain inverter to the first input node and to the first intermediate node;
a second adjustable gain inverter electrically connected to a second input node that is configured to receive the second input and to a second intermediate node;
a second fixed gain inverter connected in parallel with the second adjustable gain inverter;
a first cross-coupled inverter that has an input connected to the first input node and an output connected to the second input node;
a second cross-coupled inverter connected in parallel with the first cross-coupled inverter and having an output connected to the first input node and an input connected to the second input node;
a first inductor connected between the first intermediate node and a first output node;
a second inductor connected between the second intermediate node and a second output node;
a first boost segment;
and
a second boost segment;
wherein when the given buffer is not a last buffer in the series:
the first boost segment includes a first non-inverting amplifier having an output connected to the first input node and an input connected to the first output node and the second boost segment includes a second non-inverting amplifier having an output connected to the second input node and an input connected to the second output node;
and
wherein when the given buffer is the last buffer in the series:
the first boost segment includes a first inverting amplifier having an input and an output connected to the first input node and the second boost
segment includes a second inverting amplifier having an input and an output connected to the second input node.

15 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Optical driver with active boost

Life of this patent

Optical driver with active boost

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims20