Julijan Cesar

10-Gb/s Direct Modulation of Widely Tunable 1550-nm MEMS VCSEL

We demonstrate direct modulation of a widely tunable microelectromechanical system (MEMS) vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL). The wavelength tuning is realized with electrothermal actuation of a SiOx/SiNy-based MEMS distributed Bragg reflector (DBR). The DBR is deposited in a low-temperature plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition chamber on a InP-based half-VCSEL by means of surface micromachining. More than 60 nm of mode-hop free continuous tuning with a center wavelength of 1554 nm is achieved. A maximum 3-dB small-signal modulation response (S21) bandwidth of 7.05 GHz is reported. Quasi-error-free operation of a back-to-back link is demonstrated at 10 Gb/s for a record 47-nm tuning range, showing the compatibility of the MEMS tunable VCSEL as a cost-effective optical source in access networks and interconnects.

Simultaneous wavelength and orbital angular momentum demultiplexing using tunable MEMS-based Fabry-Perot filter

In this paper, we experimentally demonstrate simultaneous wavelength and orbital angular momentum (OAM) multiplexing/demultiplexing of 10 Gbit/s data streams using a new on-chip micro-component-tunable MEMS-based Fabry-Perot filter integrated with a spiral phase plate. In the experiment, two wavelengths, each of them carrying two channels with zero and nonzero OAMs, form four independent information channels. In case of spacing between wavelength channels of 0.8 nm and intensity modulation, power penalties relative to the transmission of one channel do not exceed 1.45, 0.79 and 0.46 dB at the hard-decision forward-error correction (HD-FEC) bit-error-rate (BER) limit 3.8 × 10-3 when multiplexing a Gaussian beam and OAM beams of azimuthal orders 1, 2 and 3 respectively. In case of phase modulation, power penalties do not exceed 1.77, 0.54 and 0.79 dB respectively. At the 0.4 nm wavelength grid, maximum power penalties at the HD-FEC BER threshold relative to the 0.8 nm wavelength spacing read 0.83, 0.84 and 1.15 dB when multiplexing a Gaussian beam and OAM beams of 1st, 2nd and 3rd orders respectively. The novelty and impact of the proposed filter design is in providing practical, integrable, cheap, and reliable transformation of OAM states simultaneously with the selection of a particular wavelength in wavelength division multiplexing (WDM). The proposed on-chip device can be useful in future high-capacity optical communications with spatial- and wavelength-division multiplexing, especially for short-range communication links and optical interconnects.

Far-field, linewidth and thermal characteristics of a high-speed 1550-nm MEMS tunable VCSEL

We report an electrically pumped 1550 nm MEMS tunable VCSEL with a continuous tuning of 101 nm at 22 °C. The top MEMS-DBR with built-in stress gradient within the dielectric layers is deposited in a low-temperature PECVD chamber on an InP-based half-VCSEL, structured by surface-micromachining and electrothermally actuated for continuous wavelength tuning. With 2.6 mA threshold current, the laser shows maximum CW output power of 3.2 mW at 1560 nm. The MEMS-VCSEL operates in single-mode with SMSR > 39 dB across the entire tuning range. At 36 °C, the tuning range reaches up to 107 nm. The divergence angle of the MEMS-VCSEL is approximately 5.6° for all tuning wavelengths. The intrinsic linewidth of an unpackaged device is 21 MHz. Quasi-error-free operation at 12.5 Gbps using a directly modulated MEMS-VCSEL is reported for a record 60 nm tuning, showing the potential of the so-called colorless source in WDM applications.

Ultra wide mode-hop free tuning around 1550-NM telecom wavelength using high-speed MEMS-VCSELS

We report ultra-wide tuning of a 1550 nm BCB based high-speed MEMS-VCSEL. The MEMS is electrothermally actuated for a continuous tuning of 101 nm. Maximum output power and minimum threshold current is 3.2 mW and 2.6 mA, respectively.

High speed surface micromachined MEMS tunable VCSEL for telecom wavelengths

We report direct modulation of a widely tunable surface micromachined MEMS VCSEL. The MEMS is electro-thermally actuated for tuning the emission wavelength over 60 nm with a center wavelength of 1554 nm. Error-free transmission is achieved at 10 Gbit/s for 47 nm tuning range.

Systematic characterization of a 1550 nm microelectromechanical (MEMS)-tunable vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) with 7.92 THz tuning range for terahertz photomixing systems

Continuous-wave (CW) terahertz (THz) photomixing requires compact, widely tunable, mode-hop-free driving lasers. We present a single-mode microelectromechanical system (MEMS)-tunable vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) featuring an electrothermal tuning range of 64 nm (7.92 THz) that exceeds the tuning range of commercially available distributed-feedback laser (DFB) diodes (∼4.8 nm) by a factor of about 13. We first review the underlying theory and perform a systematic characterization of the MEMS-VCSEL, with particular focus on the parameters relevant for THz photomixing. These parameters include mode-hop-free CW tuning with a side-mode-suppression-ratio >50 dB, a linewidth as narrow as 46.1 MHz, and wavelength and polarization stability. We conclude with a demonstration of a CW THz photomixing setup by subjecting the MEMS-VCSEL to optical beating with a DFB diode driving commercial photomixers. The achievable THz bandwidth is limited only by the employed photomixers. Once improved photomixers...

Full C-band tunable MEMS-VCSEL for next generation G.metro mobile front- and backhauling

We report full C-band tunable, 10 Gbit/s capability, directly modulated MEMS-VCSEL for next generation converged mobile fronthaul and backhaul applications. Bit error rates below 10−9 were achieved over up to 40 km SSMF.

MEMS-based wavelength and orbital angular momentum demultiplexer for on-chip applications

We demonstrate a new tunable MEMS-based WDM&OAM Fabry-Pérot filter for simultaneous wavelength (WDM) and Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) (de)multiplexing. The WDM&OAM filter is suitable for dense on-chip integration and dedicated for the next generation of optical interconnects utilizing all three degrees of freedom of the electromagnetic waves: wavelength, polarization, and OAM. The WDM&OAM filter consists of two Distributed Bragg Reflectors (DBRs), (see Fig. 1a, b): a bottom one fixed to the substrate and a movable top MEMS DBR. An applied tuning current, changing the resonator length, extends the top DBR and hence selects the central filter wavelength. A spiral phase mask on the top switches the OAM order by ±1, ±2, etc. For a detailed description of the structure and fabrication of the device, please refer to [1, 2]. The MEMS filter shows a full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) bandwidth of about 0.2 nm and a free spectral range (FSR) of about 126 nm. The phase mask provides sufficient OAM state purity in a 35 nm window around 1550 nm, covering well the whole C-band.

10-Gbps direct on-off-keying modulation across 85-nm continuous tuning range using telecom MEMS-VCSEL

The expansion of cellular networks over the past decades has gone through an astonishing evolution. Due to centralized network functions, splitting of the generation/processing of RF signal in base band units (BBUs) and the baseband-RF conversion in remote radio heads (RRHs) has become inevitable. To systematically overcome the bandwidth and latency issues, a cost-efficient WDM-PON capable of linking a BBU to a multitude of distributed RRHs is of high demand. Such a system is standardized in the G.metro project (ITU-T SG15), where the distributed 10 Gbps transceivers will automatically adjust their wavelengths which is centrally controlled [1]. The biggest challenge up to now was the lack of low-cost wideband tuneable lasers for high-speed transmission. In this work, we have developed a short-cavity, widely-tuneable, electrically-pumped MEMS-VCSEL for high-speed applications. The device operates at 10 Gbps for a continuous tuning range of 85 nm which, to the best of our knowledge, is the record tuning for any 10-Gbps directly modulated laser.

Towards a SFP+ module for WDM applications using an ultra-widely-tunable high-speed MEMS-VCSEL

In this work, we have used a tunable VCSEL for high-speed optical data transmission. To obtain wide tunability, a MEMS-DBR is surface micromachined onto a short-cavity high-speed VCSEL operating at 1550 nm. Ultra-wide continuous tuning is realized with electro-thermal actuation of the MEMS with built-in stress gradient within SiOx/SiNy dielectric layers. The MEMS-VCSEL operates in single-mode with SMSR > 40 dB across the entire tuning range. Quasi-error-free transmission of direct-modulation at record 15 Gbps is reported for 20 nm tuning, showing the potential towards the standard requirements for the SFP+ modules in the tail-ends of the WDM transmission system.