Thermally reliable compact electro-optic modulators with a low half-wave voltage
Date
2024-06-11
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Optics Continuum
Abstract
Recent advancements in thin-film lithium niobate have led to the development of high-performance integrated electro-optic modulators, which are crucial for modern optical communication systems. These modulators offer tighter mode confinement, a smaller physical footprint, and reduced modulating voltages. This study presents a Mach-Zehnder modulator (MZM) on a silicon nitride-loaded lithium niobate platform using a few-mode waveguide structure. By harnessing the exceptional thermo-optic and electro-optic effects of LiNbO3, we design and simulate this modulator employing multilayer structures with the BeamPROP solver. The modulator has a length of 3.94 mm, a Vπ value of 0.96 V, and a transition temperature (Tg) of 80 °C at 1.55 µm. This proposed modulator exhibits a crosstalk of approximately -42 dB, an extinction ratio of approximately 24 dB, and a maximum transmission of -28 dB for the first-order phase shift. These findings demonstrate the significant potential of this modulator for deployment in high-speed optical communication systems, where maintaining thermal stability and optimizing energy efficiency are paramount.
Description
This article was originally published in Optics Continuum. The version of record is available at: https://doi.org/10.1364/OPTCON.524525. © 2024 Optica Publishing Group under the terms of the Optica Open Access Publishing Agreement (https://doi.org/10.1364/OA_License_v2#VOR-OA)
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Citation
Noor Afsary, Md Koushik Alam, Md Omar Faruk Rasel, and Takaaki Ishigure, "Thermally reliable compact electro-optic modulators with a low half-wave voltage," Opt. Continuum 3, 1012-1024 (2024)