OPTICAL MODULATION

Types of Optical Modulation

Direct modulation is done by superimposing the
modulating (message) signal on the driving current

External modulation is done after the light is generated;

the laser is driven by a dc source and it is modulated
using an external modulator

Both these schemes may be implemented with either

digital or analog modulating signals
 Direct Modulation of Semiconductor Laser
The simplest and cheapest method of EO conversion is that of
directly modulating a CW laser

Semiconductor lasers are biased appropriately in order for

them to emit light

If the electronic signal to be transmitted over the fiber is applied

to an appropriately biased laser, the output optical power of the
laser varies almost linearly with the signal applied to it

However, there is a limited linear region in the lasers response

to an RF voltage applied to it
 Direct Modulation

The message signal (ac) is superimposed on the

bias current (dc) which modulates the laser

Robust and simple, hence widely used

Direct Modulation of Semiconductor Laser
 Direct Modulation of Semiconductor Laser

In order to accommodate the entire peak-to-peak variations in

the input electronic signal, the laser has to be biased to the
operating point of Ibias using a DC source

The RF signal is then superimposed on the DC source

The output optical power is related to the input current I by the

following relation:
 Direct Modulation of Semiconductor Laser

Here L denotes the lasers quantum efficiency,

h denotes Planks constant,

f is the frequency of the emitted photon and

q is an electrons charge

The lasers quantum efficiency is defined as the average

number of photons generated per electron
Direct Analog Modulation
 Direct Digital Modulation
Optical
Power
(P) P(t)
Ith
I1

I2
t
Current (I)
I(t)
t
 Issues With Direct Modulation
Although the direct modulation of semiconductor lasers is a
low-complexity and cost-effective method of generating
intensity modulated optical signals, it is limited to low-frequency
electronic signals (< 1 Gbps)

Changes in modulating signal changes the carrier density

which in turn changes the refractive index

The changes in refractive index causes variations in the center

frequency of the laser chirp

Delay between the time electrical power is applied to the time

laser starts to produce coherent light Turn on delay
The Chirped Pulse
Issues With Direct Modulation - Chirp

This pulse increases its frequency linearly in time (from red to blue)
 External Optical Modulation

Modulation and light generation are separated

Offers much wider bandwidth up to 60 GHz

Expensive
 External Modulation
In order to avoid the impairments imposed by direct modulation
of the laser using high-bandwidth signals, typically external
modulators are used

We will study two types of external modulators that are most

commonly used:

1. Mach-Zehnder Modulator (MZM)

2. Electro-absorption Modulator (EAM)

 Mach-Zehnder modulator

Single drive MZM

 Mach-Zehnder modulator
v

Pi Po

Applying V will cause a phase shift for the propagating

mode
 Mach-Zehnder modulator
Applied voltage causes variation in propagation constant.

u ( x, y , z ) u ( x, y )e i z
2 neff
where k = constant

neff neff V 0 kV
 Mach-Zehnder Modulator
In order to achieve amplitude modulation, the optical input of
the MZM is split in two paths, path 1 and path 2 with the aid of
the optical waveguides

Initially, the optical signals in each path have the same phase
1 and 2 , therefore, 1 2 = 0

Each optical waveguide is surrounded by electrodes which are

connected to the DC bias voltage and the modulating signal
voltage

These voltages are used to vary the phase of the optical signal
in in path 1 and path 2 with the aid of the so-called linear
electro-optic effect
 Mach-Zehnder Modulator
This electro-optic phenomenon typically occurs in nonlinear
optical mediums such as optical crystals, where the application
of an external electric field changes the refractive index of the
crystal

When light is passed through such a crystal, its phase is

modulated due to variation in the refractive index caused by the
amplitude variations of the applied modulating voltage

In the absence of the modulating voltage, the DC bias voltages

keep the refractive index of the crystals at values such that no
phase variation is imposed on the signals in path1 and path2
 Mach-Zehnder Modulator
With the application of the modulating voltage, the phase of the
optical signals in path 1 and path 2 changes in proportion to the
amplitude of the applied modulating voltage

The phase shifts induced by the drive signals in the two arms
are of the opposite sense, but equal in magnitude

When the phase-modulated optical signals in path1 and path2

are superimposed, they result in an optical signal whose
amplitude depends upon the phase difference

So difference in the phase 1 and 2 results in amplitude

variations of the optical signal at the output of the MZM
Mach-Zehnder modulator
Ain2 i1 2
Pout A 2
out e ei2
4

cos 1 cos 2 sin 1 sin 2

2
i1 i2 2 2
e e
cos 2 1 cos 2 2 2 cos 1 cos 2
sin 2 1 sin 2 2 2sin 1 sin 2
Pin
Pout 1 cos 1 2
2
 Electroabsorption Modulator
The second major type of optical intensity modulators is
constituted by the Electro-absorption Modulator (EAM)

In EAM, the absorption coefficient of a material is modulated in

response to the external voltage

The light-absorption of the material directly modulates the

intensity of the optical signal passing through it

EAMs are primarily manufactured using semiconductor

materials, such as for example Indium Gallium Arsenide
(InGaAs) and Indium Aluminum Arsenide (InAlAs)
 Electroabsorption Modulator

D.G. Moodie, A.D. Ellis, C.W. Ford, Generation of 6.3 ps optical pulses at a 10 GHz repetition rate using a packaged electroabsorption
modulator and dispersion decreasing fibre. Electron. Lett. 30(20), 1700 (1994)
 Electroabsorption Modulator
The mathematical relationship of the output optical field of an
EAM versus the input optical field can be written as:

Where () and () represent the input and output optical

fields respectively,

represents the power transfer function of the modulator,

while is the chirp factor
 Electroabsorption Modulator
The power transfer function of the EAM can be written as:

Where m is the modulation index of the modulator

D(t) is the instantaneous value of the data signal applied to it

EAMs are eminently suitable for integration with the

semiconductor lasers and PDs used in the optical link since all
of them are manufactured from Indium Gallium Arsenide
(InGaAs) and Indium Aluminium Arsenide (InAlAs)
 Electroabsorption Modulator
EAM can operate with much lower voltages (a few volts instead
of ten volts or more)

They can be operated at very high speed; a modulation

bandwidth of tens of gigahertz can be achieved, which makes
these devices useful for optical fiber communication

A convenient feature is that an EAM can be integrated with

distributed feedback laser diode on a single chip to form a data
transmitter in the form of a photonic integrated circuit
END