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Measurement of intermodulation distortion in high-linearity photodiodes
Anand Ramaswamy1, Nobuhiro Nunoya, Keith J Williams
1Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA. anand@ece.ucsb.edu
Optics Express
|February 23, 2010
Summary
Characterizing third order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) in photodiodes is difficult. This study evaluates two measurement techniques, providing insights into their limitations for high-linearity devices like UTC and Ge/SOI photodiodes.
Area of Science:
- Optoelectronics
- Semiconductor Devices
- Photonic Measurement
Background:
- Accurate characterization of third order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) is crucial for high-linearity photodiodes.
- Existing measurement techniques present challenges in precisely quantifying IMD3 for advanced photodiode designs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate and compare the effectiveness of standard two-tone and three-tone measurement techniques for IMD3 characterization.
- To analyze the limitations of these techniques in the context of highly linear photodiodes.
Main Methods:
- Development of a measurement system model to analyze technique limitations.
- Experimental validation using two distinct waveguide photodiode types: InP-based uni-traveling-carrier (UTC) and Ge n-i-p on Silicon-on-Insulator (SOI).
Main Results:
- The study provides a comparative analysis of the two-tone and three-tone measurement techniques.
- Simulation trends are validated against experimental IMD3 measurements on UTC and Ge/SOI photodiodes.
- Limitations of each technique for high-linearity photodiode characterization are identified.
Conclusions:
- The research offers critical insights into the challenges of IMD3 measurement in high-linearity photodiodes.
- The findings guide the selection of appropriate measurement techniques for specific photodiode applications.
- This work contributes to the accurate performance evaluation of advanced optoelectronic devices.
