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US 9,853,738 B2Granted
Distributed traveling-wave mach-zehnder modulator driver
AssigneeElenion Technologies, LLC
InventorsRan Ding, Thomas Wetteland Baehr-Jones, Michael J. Hochberg, Alexander Rylyakov
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Abstract
A distributed traveling-wave Mach-Zehnder modulator driver having a plurality of modulation stages that operate cooperatively (in-phase) to provide a signal suitable for use in a 100 Gb/s optical fiber transmitter at power levels that are compatible with conventional semiconductor devices and conventional semiconductor processing is described.
Claims19
A distributed traveling wave modulator, comprising:
- a differential optical input for receiving an optical input carrier signal and a differential optical output for providing a modulated optical carrier signal;
- a plurality N of optical phase-shifters connected in series connection as N sequential modulators between said differential optical input and said differential optical output, where N is an integer equal to or greater than 2;
- a plurality N of driver amplifier stages, each having a respective differential driver amplifier input and a differential driver amplifier output;
- N−1 delay/relay stages, each having a respective differential delay/relay input and a differential delay/relay output;
- a first of said plurality N of driver amplifier stages having its input connected to a differential electrical data input;
- each of the first N−1 of said plurality N of driver amplifier stages having its output connected to a respective input of a successive one of said N−1 delay/relay stages;
- each of said N−1 delay/relay stages having its respective differential delay/relay output connected to the differential driver amplifier input of one of the last N−1 of said plurality N of driver amplifier stages;
- and
- each of said plurality N of driver amplifier stages having a differential signal output connected to a respective one of said N sequential modulators
- wherein each driver amplifier stage includes only a single type of transistor to enable high-speed operation.
7 more elements
A method of modulating an optical signal, comprising the steps of:
- receiving the optical signal to be modulated at an optical input port;
- applying a plurality N of sequential optical phase shifts to said optical signal by operation of a plurality N of fixed-length optical phase-shifters connected in series connection as N sequential modulators, where N is greater than or equal to 2,
- each of said N−1 phase shifts after the first of said N phase shifts delayed by a time calculated to apply each of said N−1 phase shifts after the first of said N phase shifts at a respective time when said optical signal is passes a respective one of said N sequential modulators after the first modulator, and
- providing a modulated optical signal at an optical output port.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.