Abstract
This paper describes the wide temperature range operation of an
electroabsorption modulator (EAM) integrated with DFB laser diodes (LDs)
(EML) designed to reduce the power consumption and size of optical
transmitters. We optimized the multiquantum wells (MQWs) for LD and EAM
separately to realize uncooled operation. We employed a conduction band
offset $(\Delta E_{c}$) of around 250 meV for the LD and 150 meV for the EAM. The number
of well layers was set at 6 for the LD and 12 for the EAM, respectively. We
fabricated the EML using a butt-joint (BJ) process to allow us to design the
LD and the EAM independently. We introduced a ridge waveguide structure for
the LD and EAM waveguides, and designed the width of the LD and EAM mesa to
achieve a high optical coupling efficiency between the LD and the EAM. We
then used the 200-$\mu$m-long EAM for 10-Gb/s operation and the 150-$\mu$m-long EAM for 40-Gb/s operation, and thus obtained a dynamic
extinction ratio of over 9 dB at 10 Gb/s from ${-}25$$^{\circ}$C to 100 $^{\circ}$C and of 8.2 dB at 40 Gb/s from ${-}15$ to 80$^{\circ}$C. We achieved a power penalty of less than 2 dB after an 80-km
single-mode fiber (SMF) transmission at 10 Gb/s and a 2-km SMF transmission
at 40 Gb/s over a wide temperature range. These results confirm the
suitability of this EML with a BJ structure for use as a 10-Gb/s or 40-Gb/s
uncooled light source.
© 2009 IEEE
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