Integrated Design Tool for fiber-optic analog links

An integrated tool for the analysis and design of optical analog links is proposed, in order to permit optimization of joint performance of the modulator and of its electrical driver within a microwave circuital CAD. The tool comprises a circuital model of the Mach-Zehnder modulator, and a FEM simulator for modulator design from a given physical and geometrical structure. A case study of design and analysis of a broadband link operating at frequencies as high as 35 GHz is presented, to illustrate advantages of the proposed tool.