High-speed shielded velocity-matched Ti:LiNbO3 opticalmodulator

A shielded velocity-matched Ti:LiNbO₃ optical modulator is investigated, focusing on the characteristics of the traveling-wave (TW) electrode and the optical waveguide. The optical waveguide is analyzed and its parameters are determined using the newly developed modified-step-segment method (MSSM). The TW electrode is analyzed using the second-order triangular element quasi-TEM finite element method (FEM). By taking the thickness of the coplanar waveguide (CPW) traveling-wave (TW) electrode into consideration, it is confirmed that there is an optimum overlaid layer thickness for a given electrode thickness. It is also shown that very wide modulation bandwidth can be attained by using the optimum CPW TW electrode thickness and overlaid layer thickness