A single-mode modulator was realized from an APMOCVD grown structure. The multiple-quantum-well electroabsorptive material is made of shallow InGaAsP wells separated by InGaAsP barriers. It exhibits at 1.54-mu-m (TE) a 17 dB extinction ratio for a 3 V drive voltage, a 2.7 dB on-state loss and a small-signal bandwidth over 20 GHz with 1-2 mW of coupled optical power.