INTERNAL BIASING BY DELTA-DOPING FOR LOW-VOLTAGE, HIGH-BANDWIDTH QUANTUM-WELL OPTICAL MODULATORS

Optical intensity modulators must exhibit low-voltage operation, low i nsertion loss, high contrast ratio and high electrical bandwidth. Elec troabsorption calculations for semiconductor quantum wells predict tha t internal biasing by strategic delta-doping can produce greatly impro ved low-voltage operation in waveguide or normal-incidence modulators, for a specified insertion loss and contrast ratio, without compromisi ng electrical bandwidth. Growth of strategically delta-doped electrore fractive intensity modulators is shown computationally to be insensiti ve to nonreproducibility in layer growth. Internal biasing by strategi c doping is of potential value across the whole range of modulator app lications.