MZM (Mach-Zehnder Modulator) and method for realizing PAM-16

The invention provides an MZM and a method for realizing PAM-16 (Pulse-Amplitude Modulation 16). The method is characterized in that a silicon light modulator is divided into four sections with different proportions, each section is connected with a corresponding driving electrode, and an external driving chip is used for applying a digital voltage signal to each driving electrode, so that the modulation amplitude accumulation of a loaded light signal on each section at a certain moment is realized. Due to the fact that all the section are designed according to the length proportion of 1: 2: 4: 8, signals 0 and 1 are loaded on all the sections, the modulator accumulates modulation phase shift amount without repetition, and PAM-16 signals can be obtained. 本发明提供一种MZM调制器及实现PAM-16调制的方法，通过将硅光调制器划分为不同比例的4段，每个分段各自连接对应的驱动电极，通过外部驱动芯片对驱动电极施加数字电压信号，以实现某一时刻各分段上加载光信号的调制幅度累加。由于各分段按照1:2:4:8的长度比例设计，在各段上加载"0"、"1"信号，调制器累加调制相移量不会重复，并且能获得PAM-16调制信号。