Generation and Transmission of 21.4-Gbaud PDM 64-QAM Using a Novel High-Power DAC Driving a Single I/Q Modulator

• Published in: Journal of lightwave technology 2012-02, Vol.30 (4), p.532-536
• Main Authors: Gnauck, A. H., Winzer, P. J., Konczykowska, A., Jorge, F., Dupuy, J., Riet, M., Charlet, G., Zhu, B., Peckham, D. W.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 100G ethernet; Applied sciences; Bit error rate; Business and industry local networks; Circuit properties; Coherent detection; Electric, optical and optoelectronic circuits; Electronics; Exact sciences and technology; Information, signal and communications theory; Integrated optics. Optical fibers and wave guides; Modulation, demodulation; Networks and services in france and abroad; Optical and optoelectronic circuits; Optical filters; optical networking; Optical noise; Optical polarization; Phase shift keying; quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM); Receivers; Signal and communications theory; Systems, networks and services of telecommunications; Telecommunications; Telecommunications and information theory; Teleprocessing networks. Isdn; transmission; Transmission and modulation (techniques and equipments); wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM)
• ISSN: 0733-8724; 1558-2213
• DOI: 10.1109/JLT.2011.2175200

We generate a single-carrier 21.4-Gbaud polarization-division-multiplexed (PDM) 64-ary quadrature-amplitude-modulated (QAM) signal (256.8-Gb/s line rate) using a single in-phase/quadrature (I/Q) optical modulator driven by 8-level electrical waveforms from a novel high-power digital-to-analog converter (DAC). We measure a required optical signal-to-noise ratio of 29.5 dB (0.1-nm reference bandwidth; 10 -3 bit-error rate), 4.6-dB off the theoretical limit. Using ultra-large-area fiber, we achieve 400-km single-channel transmission. The DAC was also used to obtain excellent results with quadrature-phase-shift-keyed and 16-QAM signals at 21.4 Gbaud.