Enhanced electro-optic effect in GaInAsP–InP three-step quantum wells

We report on the enhanced electro-optic coefficient of GaInAsP three-step quantum wells (3SQW) for high power electrorefraction modulator applications. Measured electro-optic coefficient of the 3SQW is nearly three times higher than the conventional rectangular quantum well (RQW) at λ=1.55 μm. The enhanced electro-optic effect, combined with a low optical absorption coefficient α<1 cm−1 in the 3SQW increases a modulator figure of merit by nearly 36 times, and decreases the power consumption by nearly one order of magnitude compared with a conventional RQW design.

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