Robert J. Stone

A long-wavelength MEMS tunable VCSEL incorporating a tunnel junction

In this letter, we describe the performance of a microelectromechanical system tunable vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser operating at 1550 nm and incorporating a tunnel junction for improved current injection and reduced optical loss. These lasers exhibit single-mode powers greater than 0.28 mW over 10 nm of tuning. Peak single-mode powers are greater than 0.8 mW and minimum threshold currents are less than 1 mA.

The physics of negative differential resistance of an intracavity voltage-controlled absorber in a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser

We have constructed a vertical-cavity, surface-emitting laser with a voltage-controlled quantum well absorber in the upper mirror stack. If the lasing wavelength of this device is designed to be slightly longer than the absorber band edge, sharp negative differential resistance can be obtained in the absorber under lasing conditions. We present strong experimental evidence that this behavior arises from redshifting of the absorption excitonic peak due to the quantum confined Stark effect. Design criteria are proposed for applications including high speed modulation and self-pulsation.

Dynamic behavior and applications of a three-contact vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser

We have developed a novel three-contact vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) with an intracavity absorber for use in high-speed data communications. We demonstrate two distinct designs for our VCSEL and discuss the device physics underlying the behaviors of the two designs. Furthermore, we demonstrate a wide range of applications for these VCSELs, including optical intensity modulation, phase and amplitude modulation of a microwave optical subcarrier, optical bistability, self-pulsation, and optical disk readout.

Independent phase and magnitude control of an optically carried microwave signal with a three-terminal vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser

We demonstrate a compact integrated method for phase and magnitude control of an optically carried microwave signal with no external high-frequency circuitry. Our device consists of a novel three contact VCSEL, which permits external control of both the cavity loss and gain. Independent control of the phase and magnitude of the optically carried signal is demonstrated. With reference to the small-signal rate equations, we show that such independent control is only possible given the extra degree of freedom offered by the three contact design.

Electrically pumped directly modulated 1550-nm tunable VCSELs

In this paper, we will present the recent progress of electrically-pumped directly-modulated tunable 1550 nm VCSEL development at Bandwidth9. The device is fabricated from an all epitaxial VCSEL structure grown on an InP substrate, with a monolithically integrated tuning arm for continuous wavelength tuning. We have demonstrated over 1 mW CW output power and over 20 nm tuning range in C-band and error free transmission performance at 2.5 Gbps over 100 km SMF-28 fiber. The reliability test data of the tunable VCSELs shows a projected failure rate of less than 400 FITS.

Comparative study of the analog performance of a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser under gain and cavity loss modulation

Summary form only given.Analog applications of VCSELs require highly linear wideband operation, minimal intermodulation distortion, and high dynamic range. The maximum spur-free dynamic range (SFDR) obtained for a VCSEL is 104.3 dB Hz/sup 2/3/ at 102 MHz; error-free analog transmission over 3 km of fiber has been demonstrated at 1 GHz. This work suggests that, with future design improvements, VCSELs may be able to compete with DFB lasers for analog applications. The device used in this study is a VCSEL with an independently biased, voltage-controlled, intracavity absorber.

Integrated phase and magnitude control of a microwave optical subcarrier using a three-contact, vertical-cavity, surface-emitting laser

A new integrated method of phase and magnitude control of a microwave optical subcarrier is demonstrated using a three-contact VCSEL. The entire first quadrant of 16-QAM signal space can be achieved.

Negative differential resistance of an intracavity voltage-controlled absorber in a vertical cavity surface emitting laser

We present the first detailed investigation of the sharp negative differential resistance (NDR) within a VCSEL intracavity quantum well absorber. The intensity dependent NDR is governed by the position of the Fabry-Perot wavelength relative to the absorber excitonic peak.