Single-Sideband OFDM Transmission via a Silicon Microring IQ Modulator

We experimentally demonstrate the generation of a single-sideband orthogonal frequency division multiplexed (OFDM) signal using an on-chip silicon photonics microring-based IQ modulator. Over 18-dB sideband suppression ratio is achieved for the wideband OFDM: 15.7-GHz data band and 2.7-GHz guard band. The 31.4-Gb/s signal was transmitted over 20 km of standard single-mode fiber with a bit error rate below the forward error correction threshold. While single-sideband continuous-wave signals have been produced with such hardware, this is the first demonstration of stable data transmission on the single sideband carrier.