Performance of fiber-optic data links using 670-nm cw VCSELs and a monolithic Si photodetector and CMOS preamplifier

Abstract

To be competitive with copper technology for links and bus applications, optoelectronics must be made affordable. One means of achieving a low-cost optoelectronics link is to adapt volume-manufactured components. This may imply CMOS optoelectronic integrated circuits (OEICs), which are suggested by the huge CMOS IC volumes being produced for computer logic and memory, and red laser diodes, which are already in demand for the consumer and storage markets. In this paper, we demonstrate a potential low-cost link using a monolithically integrated Si photodiode and CMOS preamplifier, a multimode fiber-optic transmission medium, and red, vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs). The integrated receiver shows a 3.5-dB improvement in received power when light at 670 nm instead of 845 nm is used; it operates error free at both the Fibre Channel rate of 531.25 Mb/s and the SONET OC-12 rate of 622.08 Mb/s. The red VCSELs are shown to be capable of a 1.5-Gb/s transmission data rate with as little as 18 mW average power dissipation. The potential for fabricating arrays using both of these technologies for optical buses is discussed.