Abstract

A high speed electroabsorption modulator (EAM) with high saturation optical power is desirable for analog fiber link applications, as the link gain increases quadratically with the optical power. EAMs with multiple-quantum-well (MQW) active layers are popular for microwave photonic applications, as they typically possess a large absorption-coefficient change with applied electric field. However, these MQW modulator structures have shown relatively low saturation optical power due primarily to the field-screening effect due to the trapped photogenerated carriers within the well.¹ EAMs with improved saturation properties have been demonstrated using lower barrier heights by applying appropriate strain at the well/barrier interface.²

© 2002 Optical Society of America