Optical single-sideband transmitter for various electrical signaling formats

A simple high-speed data transmitter to generate optical single-sideband (OSSB) signals using different electrical signaling formats is presented. The OSSB signal is generated by combining the information signal with the Hilbert transform of that signal, obtained by means of electrical processing. A detailed mathematical model is introduced to evaluate the transmitter performance, considering the generation of OSSB signals with different electrical signaling formats. Two signaling formats are evaluated and compared: nonreturn-to-zero (NRZ) and alternate mark inversion. The optimum transmitter operation conditions, namely bias and drive voltages, are derived according to the signaling format used and confirmed experimentally. Transmission tests conducted using 10-Gb/s OSSB-NRZ signals to assess the improvement obtained by electrical dispersion compensation show a significant mitigation of the dispersion distortion.