Vol. 39, Issue 3, pp. 467-472 (2009)

Abstract

We have successfully designed and demonstrated a co-planar waveguide (CPW) Mach–Zehnder (MZ) electro-optic (EO) modulator using a strip-loaded waveguide structure. The hybrid material, easily synthesized by sol–gel process, with a large EO coefficient of r₃₃ = 50 pm/V and a long- -term stability at 80 °C for 200 hours is selected as the active layer. A simple and easily fabricated strip-loaded waveguide structure is designed for utilizing the EO material and reducing  the coupling loss with optical fiber. The optimized design principles of the efficient transmission for such a modulator are discussed. The measured half-wave voltage V_π of 8.5 V for the MZ modulator is gained at 1550 nm and shows a good agreement with the simulating result.