High-performance and low-consumption 10 Gb/s GaAs PHEMT driver for external modulation transmitter

This letter describes the realization of a high-performance GaAs PHEMT driver for 10 Gb/s transmitter with external coding in long haul optical transmission systems. It is shown that with an appropriate design for both IC and packaging, gain up to 14 dB, 2.5 Vp-p output drive-voltage and 1.5 W power consumption can be achieved, with adequate switching times for bit rates up to 12.5 Gb/s. The module has been successfully tested with a 18 GHz bandwidth polarization-independant pigtailed MQW electroabsorption modulator.