Abstract: An electronic driver circuit for use with a modulator such as a segmented Mach-Zehnder Modulator (MZM) is provided. The electronic driver circuit includes a first delay buffer implemented as a first complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) inverter and a second delay buffer implemented as a second CMOS inverter. The second CMOS inverter follows the first CMOS inverter and has a second gate width smaller than a first gate width of the first CMOS inverter. The first CMOS inverter is configured to produce a first delayed electrical signal from a received electrical signal and the second CMOS inverter is configured to produce a second delayed electrical signal from the first delayed electrical signal produced by the first CMOS inverter.

Abstract: An apparatus comprising a first electrical driver configured to generate a first binary voltage signal according to first data, a second electrical driver configured to generate a second binary voltage signal according to second data, wherein the first data and the second data are different, and a first optical waveguide arm coupled to the first electrical driver and the second electrical driver, wherein the first optical waveguide arm is configured to shift a first phase of a first optical signal propagating along the first optical waveguide arm according to a first voltage difference between the first binary voltage signal and the second binary voltage signal to produce a first, multi-level phase-shifted optical signal.