Equalization of PAM-4 Signal Generated by Silicon Microring Modulator for 64-Gbit/s Transmission

Abstract

We propose and demonstrate a 64-Gbit/s four-level pulse-amplitude-modulation transmission by using a limited modulation bandwidth silicon microring modulator (SiMRM) and the Volterra equalization scheme. Severe intersymbol interference caused by both the chromatic dispersion of the optical fiber and the bandwidth limitation of components can be compensated. Besides, several equalization schemes are compared and analyzed in terms of performance and complexity. In addition, the design and characteristics of the SiMRM used in the experiment are also discussed.