Chapter Three

Optical Transmitters
Topics to be covered
▪ Optical Light Sources: Semiconductor Lasers and LEDs
▪ Modulation Techniques
▪ Transmitter Design Issues
Examples of Man Made Sources of Light (LEDs/bulbs,
torch, lighter, candle, firework, laser, fire)
Example of LASER Sources /Beams
Some Applications of Laser Light Source
Communication Defense

Laser cutting
Health Manufacturing
 3.1. Laser Fundamentals
A. Spontaneous and Stimulated Emissions

• Absorption : Energy is absorbed by an electron, the electrons are excited into vacant energy shells.
• Spontaneous Emission : The electron decays from level 2 to level 1 through the emission of a photon
with the energy= hv. It is a completely random process.
• Stimulated Emission : electron in an upper energy level can be triggered or stimulated in phase by an
incoming photon of a specific energy
 ▪ Figure shows Conduction and valence
bands of a semiconductor
▪ Electrons in the conduction band and
holes in the valence band recombine to
emit photons

Eg = E2 - E1
Properties of Stimulated Emission
The stimulated photons have unique properties:
– In phase with the incident photon
– Same wavelength as the incident photon
– Travel in same direction as incident photon
 Population Inversion
Condition for Population Inversion:
• Let N1 be the number of atoms in the ground state E1 and N2 be the number of atoms in
the higher energy state E2.
• Generally, the atoms in the ground state will be higher than that of the higher energy
state and this is the thermal equilibrium condition given by N1>N2.
• But, for population inversion to occur, the number of atoms in E2 must be greater than
E1. i.e., N2>N1
Pumping Mechanism
• Pumping is provided to achieve the condition of population inversion.
• Some external factors are used to increase the population of higher
energy levels.
• It can be done by pumping energy into a laser medium, such as a gas,
liquid, or solid.
• The energy can be in the form of heat, light, or electrical current and
it is absorbed by the atoms in the medium, causing them to become
excited and move to higher energy levels
Optical Pumping

• In optical pumping, strong light sources are used to increase the atoms
or molecules in the higher energy states than the ground state
Electrical Pumping

• In electrical pumping, an external electric field or electric power supplies

are used. Generally, electrical pumping is provided for gas lasers such as
CO2 lasers, Argon lasers, etc
Thermal Pumping

• Thermal pumping involves the use of heat as an energy source or

pump source to achieve population inversion in the laser medium
 Properties of Laser
▪ The light emitted from a laser is monochromatic, that is, it is of one color/wavelength.
In contrast, ordinary white light is a combination of many colors (or wavelengths) of
light.

▪ Lasers emit light that is highly directional, that is, laser light is emitted as a relatively
narrow beam in a specific direction. Ordinary light, such as from a light bulb, is
emitted in many directions away from the source.

▪ The light from a laser is said to be coherent, which means that the wavelengths of the
laser light are in phase in space and time. Ordinary light can be a mixture of many
wavelengths.

These three properties of laser light are what can make it more hazardous than ordinary light.
Laser light can deposit a lot of energy within a small area.
 B. Carrier Recombination Processes
• There are many different electron–hole recombination processes
• Based on the mechanisms responsible for these processes, they are classified into
three general categories:
(1) the Shockley–Read recombination processes, (2) the bimolecular
recombination processes, and (3) the Auger recombination processes
• A Shockley–Read process involves one carrier at a time
• In Shockley–Read also called trap-assisted recombination, the electron in transition between bands
passes through a new energy state (localized state) created within the band gap by a dopant or a
defect in the crystal lattice.

• A bimolecular process takes place with an electron and a hole simultaneously. It is radiative
recombination!

• An Auger process is a three-body process with three participating carriers at the same time

• In Auger process, the excess energy from the electron-hole recombination is transferred to electrons
or holes that are subsequently excited to higher energy states within the same band instead of giving
off photons
Radiative and Nonradiative Recombination
• In a radiative recombination process, the released energy
is emitted as electromagnetic radiation.
• In a nonradiative recombination process, no radiation is emitted, and
the released energy is eventually converted to thermal energy in the
form of lattice vibrations.
• Only radiative processes are useful to the function of semiconductor
lasers and LEDs
Radiative efficiency:
▪ The total recombination rate for the excess carriers in a semiconductor
can be expressed as the sum of radiative and nonradiative recombination
rates:
𝑹 = 𝑹𝒓𝒂𝒅 + 𝑹𝒏𝒐𝒏𝒓𝒂𝒅 (3.1)

▪ The lifetime of an excess electron–hole pair associated with radiative recombination

is called the radiative carrier lifetime, τrad, and that associated with nonradiative
recombination is called the nonradiative carrier lifetime, τnonrad.
▪ They are related to the total spontaneous carrier recombination lifetime, τs, of the
excess carriers by
𝟏 𝟏 𝟏
= + (3.2)
𝝉𝒔 𝝉𝒓𝒂𝒅 𝝉𝒏𝒐𝒏𝒓𝒂𝒅
• For low to moderate injected minority carrier density relative to the
majority carriers,
𝟏
𝝉𝒓𝒂𝒅 = (3.3)
𝑩𝒓 𝑵+𝑷

Where N and P are the respective majority carrier concentrations in the n-

type and p-type regions , and Br is the recombination coefficient (cm3/s)
• The spontaneous carrier recombination rate, ϒs, is defined as

𝟏
𝜸𝒔 = (3.4)
𝝉𝒔

• This parameter is the total rate of carrier recombination including the

contributions from all, radiative and nonradiative, spontaneous recombination
processes but excluding the contribution from the stimulated recombination
process
• The radiative efficiency, or the internal quantum efficiency, of a
semiconductor is defined as
𝑹𝒓𝒂𝒅 𝝉𝒔
𝜼𝒊 = = (3.5)
𝑹 𝝉𝒓𝒂𝒅
• Example: Compare the approximate radiative minority carrier lifetimes in gallium arsenide
and silicon when the minority carriers are electrons injected into the p-type region which has
a hole concentration of 1018 cm-3. The injected electron density is small compared with the
majority carrier density. Br = 7.21x10-10 cm3/s for GAs, and 1.79x10-15 cm3/s for Silicon
𝟏
Solution: Equation (3.3) gives the radiative minority carrier lifetime tr as: 𝝉𝒓𝒂𝒅 =
𝑩𝒓 𝑵+𝑷
In the p-type region, the hole concentration determines the radiative carrier lifetime as P >> N.
𝟏
Hence: 𝝉𝒓𝒂𝒅 ≈ 𝑩
𝒓𝑵

Thus for gallium arsenide:

τrad = [7.21 × 10-10 × 1018]-1

= 1.39 × 10-9= 1.39 ns

For silicon:
τrad = [1.79  10-15  1018]-1
= 5.58  10-4 = 0.56 ms

Thus the direct bandgap gallium arsenide has a radiative carrier lifetime factor of around 2.5 x 10-6 less than
the indirect bandgap silicon.
C. Laser Amplification, Feedback, and Oscillation
• A laser diode is a semiconductor optical amplifier that is endowed with a path for optical
feedback.
• A semiconductor optical amplifier is a forward-biased heavily doped p-n junction fabricated from
a direct-bandgap semiconductor material.
• The injected current is sufficiently large to provide optical gain.
• The optical feedback is provided by mirrors, which are usually implemented by cleaving the
semiconductor material along its crystal planes.
• The sharp refractive index difference between the crystal and the surrounding air causes the
cleaved surfaces to act as reflectors.
• Thus, the semiconductor crystal acts both as a gain medium and as a Fabry-Perot optical
resonator, as illustrated in Fig. below.
• Provided that the gain coefficient is sufficiently large, the feedback converts the optical amplifier
into an optical oscillator, i.e., a laser.
• The device is called a laser diode or a diode laser (it is also sometimes referred to as a
semiconductor injection laser).
Laser working Principle: Fabry-Perot cavity

Figure : Schematic drawing of multiple

reflections inside a Fabry-Perot cavity and the
corresponding partially transmitted beams. E1 is
Gain medium the first transmitted beam, E2 is the transmitted
beam after one round-trip inside the cavity, E3 is
the transmitted beam after two round-trips inside
the cavity, and so on.
Figure : A laser diode is a forward-biased
p-n junction with two parallel surfaces that act as
reflectors.
Laser Amplification:
• The gain coefficient g0(v) of a semiconductor optical amplifier has a peak
value gp that is approximately proportional to the injected-carrier
concentration, which in turn is proportional to the injected current density
J. Thus,
 J  el
g    - 1 , JT = nT (3.6)
 JT  t
i rad

where
• τrad is the radiative electron-hole recombination lifetime ,
• ηi is the internal quantum efficiency,
• l is the thickness of the active region,
• α is the thermal-equilibrium absorption coefficient,
• ΔnT and concentration and current density required to just make JT are the
injected-carrier e the semiconductor transparent.
Laser Feedback:
▪ The feedback is often obtained by cleaving the crystal planes normal to
the plane of the junction, or by polishing two parallel surfaces of the
crystal.
▪ The active region of the p-n junction then also serves as a planar-mirror
optical resonator of length d and cross-sectional area lw.
▪ Semiconductor materials typically have large refractive indexes, so that
the power reflectance at the semiconductor-air interface
2
 n -1 
=  (3.7)
 n +1 
Where n is the refractive index of semiconductor material
Laser Resonator Losses:
▪ The principal source of resonator loss arises from the partial reflection at the
surface of the crystal.
▪ This loss constitutes the transmitted useful laser light.
▪ For a resonator of length d , the reflection loss coefficient is
1  1 
 m =  m1 +  m2 = ln   (3.8)
2d  12 
▪ The total loss coefficient is
r = s + m (3.9)

where αs as represents other sources of loss, including free-carrier absorption in

the semiconductor material and scattering from optical inhomogeneities.
• Losses caused by optical spread may be phenomenologically accounted for by
defining a confinement factor Γr to represent the fraction of the optical energy
lying within the active region . Then the resonator losses are modified as
1
 r = ( m +  s ) (3.9)


Figure : Spatial spread of the laser light in the direction

perpendicular to the plane of the junction for:
(a) homostructure, and
(b) heterostructure lasers.
Laser Gain Coefficients:
Gain Condition: Laser Threshold
▪ The laser oscillation condition is that the gain exceed the loss, gp > αr.
▪ The threshold gain coefficient is therefore αr . Setting gp= αr and J =JT,
a threshold injected current density Jt given by
r + 
Jt = JT (3.10)

Where the transparent current density JT is given by
el
JT = n T (3.11)
it rad
JT is the current density that just makes the medium transparent.
• The threshold current density Jt is a key parameter in characterizing the laser-
diode performance; smaller values of Jt indicate superior performance.
• Jt is minimized by maximizing the internal quantum efficiency ηi; and by
minimizing the resonator loss coefficient αr , the transparency injected-
carrier concentration ΔnT, and the active-region thickness l.
• As l is reduced beyond a certain point, however, the loss coefficient αr
becomes larger because the confinement factor Γ decreases.
• Consequently, Jt decreases with decreasing l until it reaches a minimum
value, beyond which any further reduction causes Jt to increase
• In double-heterostructure lasers, however, the confinement factor remains
near unity for lower values of l because the active layer behaves as an optical
waveguide .
• The result is a lower minimum value of Jt , and therefore superior
performance.
Figure : Dependence of the threshold
current density Jt on the thickness of the active
layer l. The double-heterostructure laser exhibits a
lower value of J t than the homo structure laser,
and therefore superior performance. The increase
of Jt at small values of l is a result of the reduction
in confinement for thin active layers.
EXAMPLE: Threshold Current for an InGaAsP Homostructure Laser Diode:
Consider an InGaAsP homostructure laser diode with the material
parameters ΔnT = 1.25 x 1018 cm-3, α = 600 cm-1 , τrad = 2.5 ns, n = 3.5,
and ηi= 0.5 at T = 300 K. Assume that the dimensions of the junction
are d = 200 μm, W = 10 μm, and l = 2 μm. Then Calculate threshold
current density and threshold current.

Solution :
The current density necessary for transparency is then calculated using
el
JT = n T (3.11)
it rad
then JT = 3.2 X 104 A/cm2 .
 2
Surface reflectance R is calculated using  n -1 
=  (3.7)
 n +1 
Then R=0.32.
The corresponding mirror loss coefficient is αm =1/d*ln(1/R)=59cm-1.
Assuming that the loss coefficient due to other effects is also αs = 59 cm-1
and that the confinement factor Γ=1, the total loss coefficient is αm =118 cm-
1.

▪ Then the threshold current density,

Jt =[(αr+ α)/ α]JT=[(118+600)/600][3.2x104]= 3.8x104 cm/A2 .
The corresponding threshold current, it=Jtwd=760 mA, which is rather high.
**Homostructure lasers are rarely used because of the difficulties of
achieving CW operation without cooling to dissipate!
EXAMPLE : Threshold Current for an InGaAsP Heterostructure Laser Diode:
We turn now to an InGaAsP/lnP double-heterostructure laser diode with the same
parameters and dimensions as in Example above except for the active-layer
thickness, which is now taken to be l = 0.1 μm instead of 2 μm. Then Calculate
threshold current density and threshold current and compare with the previous
example.
Solution:
If the confinement of light is assumed to be perfect (Γ= 1), we may use the same
values for the resonator loss coefficient ar. The transparency current density is then
reduced by a factor of 20 to become JT = 1600 A/cm2 , and the threshold current
density assumes a more reasonable value of Jt = 1915 A/cm2 .
The corresponding threshold current is it =38 mA.

But, it = 760 mA for Homestructre ! Significant reduction by a factor 20

(760/38=20)!

** It is this significant reduction in threshold current that made CW operation of

the double-heterostructure laser diode feasible at room temperature !
D. Power and Efficiency
Internal Photon Flux:
The generated internal photon flux density (photons/s):
 i - it
i , i>it
= e (3.12)
0 , i  it

▪ Thus, the steady-state laser internal photon flux (photons/s) generated within the active
region) is equal to the electron flux (injected electrons/s) in excess of that required for
threshold, multiplied by the internal quantum efficiency ηi.
▪ The internal laser power above threshold is simply related to the internal photon flux Φ
by the relation P=hνΦ so that we obtain
1.24
P = i (i - it ) (3.13)
0
where λ0 is expressed in μm, i in amperes, and P in watts.
Output Photon Flux and Efficiency:
▪ The extraction efficiency ηe is the ratio of the loss associated with the useful light
transmitted through the mirrors to the total resonator loss αr .
▪ If only the light transmitted through mirror 1 is used, then 𝜼𝒆 = 𝜶𝒎𝟏 /𝜶𝒓 ; on the other
hand, if the light transmitted through both mirrors is used, then 𝜼𝒆 = 𝜶𝒎 /𝜶𝒓 . In the latter
𝟏 𝟏
case, if both mirrors have the same reflectance R(, we obtain 𝜼𝒆 = [ 𝒍𝒏( )]/𝜶𝒓 . The laser
𝒅 𝑹
output photon flux is therefore given by
i - it
 = ie (3.14)
e
▪ The proportionality between the laser output photon flux and the injected electron flux
above threshold set forth in (3.14) is governed by a quantity known as the external
differential quantum efficiency,

d = ie (3.15)
▪ The quantity ηd thus represents the rate of change of the output photon flux
with respect to the injected electron flux above threshold:
d 0
d = (3.16)
d (i / e)
ℎ𝑣
▪ The laser output power above threshold is 𝑃𝑜 = ℎν Φ0 = η𝑑 (𝑖 − 𝑖𝑡 )( ) which
𝑒
is written more simply as
1.24
P0 =  d ( i - it ) (3.17)
0

when λo is expressed in μm. This relationship is called the light-current curve.

▪ The slope of this curve above threshold is known as the differential responsivity
of the laser, which is usually specified in units of W / A:

dP0 1.24
= = d (3.18)
di 0

[ λo ( μm), P0 (W), i(A) ]

Figure :Measured (solid) and ideal (dashed) light-current curves for: (a) a gain-guided MQW InGaAsP /lnGaAsP laser
diode operated at a wavelength of 1550 nm in the near infrared ; (b) a MQW GaN/lnGaN laser diode operated at a
wavelength of 405 nm in the violet. Nonlinearities, which are not accounted for by the simple theory, cause the
optical output power to saturate.
The power-conversion efficiency (or wall-plug efficiency) ηc is
defined as the ratio of the emitted laser light power to the electrical
input power iV, where V is the forward-bias voltage applied to the
ℎ𝑣
diode. Since 𝑃𝑜 = ηd 𝑖 − 𝑖𝑡 , we have
𝑒

 it  h
 c = d  1 -  eV (3.19)
 i 
EXAMPLE: Comparison of Efficiencies for Multiquantum-Well and Double
Heterostructure InGaAsP Laser Diodes.
Consider once again the previous example for the InGaAsP/lnP double-
heterostructure laser diode with ηi= 0.5, αm = 59 cm-1 , αr =118 cm-1 , and it =38 mA.
If the light from both output faces is used, the extraction efficiency is ηd = α m/ α r =
0.5, while the external differential quantum efficiency is ηe= ηiηd = 0.24. At λ0 =1300
nm, the differential responsivity of this laser is R= dP0/di = 0.24 W/A. If, for
example, i =50 mA, we have i-it = 12 mA and Po= 12 x 0.24 = 2.9 mW. Comparison of
these numbers with those reported in above figure(a) and Table for MQW
InGaAsP/lnGaAsP laser diode operated at 1550 nm reveals that the MQW laser has
a lower threshold current and a higher external differential quantum efficiency
than the double-heterostructure laser, as expected.
 E. Far Field Radiation Pattern and Frequency of Oscillation
Frequency of Operation/Spectral Characteristics:
Modes in the laser diode: lateral/longitudinal modes and transverse modes
▪ If I /λo is sufficiently small, the waveguide will admit only a single mode in the
transverse direction perpendicular to the junction plane.
▪ However, w is usually larger than λo, so that the waveguide will support several
modes in the direction parallel to the plane of the junction.
▪ Modes in the direction parallel to the junction plane are called lateral modes.
▪ The larger the ratio W/λo, the greater the number of lateral modes possible.
Single mode operation:
▪ suppressing higher order lateral modes with
greater resonator loss coefficients and hence
they fail to satisfy oscillation condition and
oscillate at a power less than the lowest
fundamental mode.
▪ Mechanism to get single mode:
❖ reducing l and w
❖ Gain guided and index guided configurations
❖ Reducing length of resonator
❖ Using distributed Bragg reflectors(DBR) instead
of cleaved or polished surfaces.
Far Field Radiation Pattern:
▪ A laser diode with an active layer of dimensions l
and w emits light with far-field angular divergence =
λo/l (radians) in the plane perpendicular to the
junction and λo/W in the plane parallel to the
junction.
▪ For example, l=2μm, W=10 μm, and λo=800 nm, the
divergence angles are calculated to be 23° and 5°.
▪ Light from a single-transverse-mode laser diode, for
which w is smaller, has an even larger angular
divergence.
▪ The spatial distribution of the far-field light within
the radiation cone depends on the number of
transverse modes and on their optical powers.
F. Example of Materials and Device structures
GaAs/Ga1-x Alx As Lasers:
▪ The energy gap of binary III-V semiconductors covers a broad range (from a fraction
of 1 eV to a few eV) for applications.
▪ Since the bandgap translates to the emission photon energy of lasers, a wide
emission spectrum is covered.
▪ In practice, however, operational devices are limited by the availability of substrate
materials and the possibility of lattice matching in the crystal growth of the laser
structures.
▪ The most common substrates that are available with relatively low defect density
are GaAs and InP crystals.
▪ In the early stage of the crystal growth development, it was realized that a solid
solution of two binary compound semiconductors can form ternary or quaternary
alloy semiconductors.
▪ For example, the solid solution of GaAs and AlAs can form Ga1-xAlxAs
semiconductors.
▪ The two most important classes of semiconductor lasers are those that are based
on III-V semiconductors that can be grown on GaAs or InP substrates.
Figure : A typical double heterostructure GaAs/GaAIAs laser. Electrons and holes are
injected into the active GaAs layer from the n and p GaAIAs. Photons with frequencies
near v = Eg/h are amplified by stimulating electron-hole recombination.
The first system is based on GaAs and Ga1-xAlxAs semiconductor
crystals:
▪ In this case, the active region is either GaAs or Ga1-xAlxAs.
▪ Since an AlAs semiconductor crystal has a larger bandgap than that of
GaAs, the ternary compound crystal Ga1-xAlxAs has a bandgap between
those of GaAs (x = 0, Egap = 1.43 eV) and AlAs (x = 1, Egap = 2.1 eV).
▪ The subscript x indicates the fraction of Ga atoms in GaAs that are
replaced by AI.
▪ The resulting lasers emit (depending on the active region molar
fraction x and its doping) at 0.75 μm < λ< 0.88 μm.
▪ This spectral region is convenient for short-haul (2 km) optical
communications in silica fibers.
The second system has Ga1-xlnxAs1-y as its active region:
▪ The lasers emit in the range 1.1 μm < λ < 1.6 μm depending on x and y.
▪ The region near 1.55 μm is especially favorable, optical fibers are
available with losses as small as 0.15 dB/km at this wavelength, making
it extremely desirable for long-distance optical communications.
▪ In this section we will consider GaAs/Ga1-xAlxAs lasers.
▪ A generic laser of this type, depicted in Figure above, has a thin (0.1-0.2
μm ) region of GaAs sandwiched between two regions of GaAIAs.
▪ It is consequently called a double heterostructure laser.
▪ The basic layered structure is grown epitaxially on a crystalline GaAs
substrate so that it is uninterrupted crystallo-graphically.
▪ The thin active region is usually undoped while one of the bounding Ga1-xAlxAs layers is doped
heavily n-type and the other p-type.
▪ The difference

▪ between the indices of refraction of GaAs and the ternary crystal with a molar fraction x gives rise
to a three-layered dielectric waveguide.
▪ When a positive bias is applied to the device, electrons are injected from the n-type Ga1-xAlxAs
into the active GaAs region while a density of holes equal to that of the electrons in the active
region is caused by injection from the p side.
▪ The density of holes must equal that of the electrons to achieve charge neutrality.
▪ The electrons that are injected into the active region are prevented from diffusing out into the p
region by means of the potential barrier ΔEc due to the difference ΔEg between the energy gaps of
GaAs and Ga1-xAlxAs.
▪ The x dependence of the energy gap of Ga1-xAlxAs is approximated by
H. Single-Mode Semiconductor Lasers
▪ The longitudinal mode with the smallest cavity loss
reaches threshold first and becomes the dominant mode.
▪ Other neighboring modes are discriminated by their
higher losses.
▪ The performance of a single-mode laser is often
characterized by the mode suppression ratio (MSR),
defined as MSR = Pmm / Psm,
▪ where Pmm is the main-mode power and Psm is the power
of the most dominant side mode. The MSR should exceed
1,000 (or 30 dB) for a good single-mode laser.
I. Distributed Feedback Lasers:
 Bragg grating reflection principle

FBG reflection principle

WBG reflection principle

Figure: Structures of WBG: (a) surface
WBG, (b) side wall WBG and (c) cladding
WBG
• In the DFB structure, traaveling waves are reflected partially and periodically as they propagate in the cavity as
illustrated in Figure (b).
• The left- and right-traveling waves can only coherently couple to set up a mode if their frequency is related to
the spatial corrugation period Λ, taking into account that the medium alters the wave-amplitudes via optical gain
• The allowed DFB modes are not exactly at Bragg wavelengths but are symmetrically placed about λB
• If λm is an allowed DFB lasing mode then

where m is a mode integer, 0, 1, 2,…, and L is the effective length of the diffraction grating, corrugation length .
The index n in is again the effective refractive index
Example: Consider a DFB laser that has a corrugation period Λ of 0.22 μm and a grating length of
400 μm. Suppose that the effective refractive index of the medium is 3.5. Assuming a first-order
grating, calculate the Bragg wavelength, the mode wavelengths, and their separation.

Solution : The Bragg wavelength is

The two are separated by 0.0017 μm or 1.7 nm. Due to a design asymmetry, only one mode will
appear in the output and for most practical purposes the mode wavelength can be taken as λB. Note:
The wavelength calculation was kept to five decimal places because λm is very close to λB.
Types of Bragg Gratings

Sampled FBG

Chirped FBG

Sampled WBG
Chirped WBG
▪ Mode selectivity of the DFB mechanism results from the Bragg condition.
▪ It state that coupling occurs only for a specific wavelength 𝜆B satisfying :

(3.20)

▪ where Λ is the grating period and n̄ is the average value of the mode index
▪ For a DFB laser designed to operate at 1550 nm, Λ is about 235 nm if we use n̄ =
3.3.
▪ Semiconductor lasers employing the DFB mechanism can be classified into two
broad categories: DFB lasers and distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) lasers.
 Figure : (a) a distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) multiquantum-well
laser diode with DBR mirrors outside the active region. (b) a
distributed feedback (DFB) multiquantum-well laser diode with a
DBR structure that resides below the active region and serves as a
distributed reflector. (c) Structure for a distributed feedback (DFB)
muitiquantum-well laser diode with a corrugation between the
active and guiding layers that acts as a distributed reflector.

Figure: Buried-heterostructure multi-quantum-

well distributed- feedback laser used for optical
fiber communications in the 1300-1600-nm
wavelength range.
 1550nm DFB Laser; 200 kHz
Linewidth, 40mW CW Power,
80mW Pulsed Power OPTICAL SPECIFICATIONS (TYPICAL)
Real DFB(e.g.) •Center Wavelength: 1550 nm ±5 nm
•Output Power (CW): 40 mW
•Emission Bandwidth: < 200 kHz (160 kHz typ)
•SMSR: 35 dB min (50 dB typ)
•Wavelength Shift w/Temperature: 0.08
nm/°C
•Wavelength Shift w/Current: 0.003 nm/mA
•Pulsed Output Power: 80 mW
ELECTRICAL SPECIFICATIONS (TYPICAL)
•Threshold Current: 8 mA (typ)
Price: $ 1500=90k Birr •Operating Current: 300 mA (typ)
•Operating Voltage: 1.6 V (typ)
•TEC Current: 1 A (max)
•TEC Voltage: 1.5 V (max)
•Thermistor: 10 kOhm
•Internal Photodiode Responsivity: 5 mA / W
•Internal Photodiode Dark Current: 500 nA

FIBER PIGTAIL AND TERMINATION

•Single Mode SMF28, Fiber Core: 9 μm
•(PM Fiber is available as an option for an
additional charge)
•FC/APC Connector
II. Coupled-Cavity Semiconductor Lasers

Figure : Coupled-cavity
laser structures: (a)
external-cavity laser; (b)
cleaved-coupled-cavity
laser
III. Tunable Semiconductor Lasers (b) Twin-guide laser

(a) Multi-section DBR laser

▪ In tunable twin-guide laser tuning layer is added vertically

within a standard DFB structure and two different sampled
• The laser wavelength can be tuned almost gratings are employed for tuning, as Such a device is much
continuously over the range 10–17 nm simpler to fabricate and operate than the three- or four-
by controlling the currents in the phase and
Bragg sections. section DBR designs.
▪ The resulting laser can be tuned over a 40-nm wavelength
rangewhile maintaining a relatively large output power
(∼10 mW) and a high side-mode suppression ratio
(>30 dB)
V. Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Lasers (VCSEL)
▪ VCSELs offer a number of distinct advantages in terms of much easier manufacturability (with high yield and volume),
testing, packaging, coupling into optical fibers, and the implementation of 2D arrays, which can be addressable as well.
▪ Advances on VCSELs are likely to make this laser diode technology one of the leaders in photonics over the next decade
▪ Tunbale over 50nm wavelength range
I. Direct Modulation Capability of Laser Diode
▪ The direct modulation of the optical output power from a laser diode is achieved by modulating
the LD drive current
▪ The modulation can be from an analog signal or digital
▪ We first consider small signal AC modulation
▪ A DC current Ib is applied first to bias the LD and obtain a DC (steady) optical output power Pb .
▪ The LD is then modulated by a sinusoidal signal 𝑰𝒎 𝐬𝐢𝐧(𝟐𝝅𝒇𝒕) superimposed on Ib , where Im is
the maximum amplitude of the signal and f is the modulation frequency
▪ The modulation of the diode input current about Ib gives rise to the output optical power varying
about its DC value of 𝒑𝒎 𝐬𝐢𝐧(𝟐𝝅𝒇𝒕 + 𝝓) where 𝑝𝑚 is the maximum amplitude of the modulated
output and ϕ is a phase difference between the input signal (modulating current) and the output
signal (modulated optical power) .
▪ 𝑰 𝒕 = 𝑰𝒃 + 𝑰𝒎 𝐬𝐢 𝐧 𝟐𝝅𝒇𝒕 → 𝑷 𝒕 = 𝑷𝒃 + 𝒑𝒎 𝐬𝐢𝐧(𝟐𝝅𝒇𝒕 + 𝝓)
▪ In a laser diode the photon population builds up
very fast after injection of carriers.
▪ As the photons build up the carrier density
decreases until it falls below the steady-state
carrier density.
▪ At this point, the rate of change of photon
density becomes negative.
▪ The photons start building up again when the
carrier injection crosses the steady-state value.
▪ Damped oscillatory variations in carrier and
photon density are observed.
▪ The system behaves as a tuned circuit and
resonance occurs at some characteristic
frequency.
Figure: Measured (solid curves) and fitted
▪ These relaxation oscillations of the laser field
set the upper limit of modulating frequency for (dashed curves) modulation response of a 1.55-
the case of directly modulated laser diodes. μm DFB laser as a function of modulation
▪ The relaxation oscillation frequency depends on frequency at several bias levels
both the spontaneous lifetime and the photon
lifetime.
▪ As can be seen in figure above, the response (dB) vs frequency characteristic is relatively flat until high
frequencies, and then exhibits a prominent peak at a certain frequency called the relaxation oscillation
frequency fr
▪ fr depends on the LD characteristics, and is given by
1

1  1 J  2
fr =   - 1 
2 t st ph  J t  

▪ Under direct modulation a laser diode cannot be modulated at a rate higher than that given by fr in above
equation
▪ The photon lifetime τph is the average lifetime for which the photons exist in the cavity before getting lost
by absorption in the cavity or emission through any one of the facets .
▪ The photon lifetime in a Fabry-Perot cavity can be estimated from
1 c  1  1 
= 
 r + ln  
t ph n  2d  12  

▪ As studied in previous sessions, τs is the spontaneous lifetime of the carrier given by

1 1 1
= +
t s t rad t nrad
Example: Estimate the upper limit modulation frequency of an injection laser diode driven by an
injection current twice as high as the threshold current. Assume the refractive index of the lasing
material to be 3.6 , the length of the cavity is 250 μm, average loss of the cavity to be 103 cm-1
and the values of the spontaneous recombination life time will be 1 ns.
Solution: The facet reflectivity
𝟐 𝟐
𝕽𝟏 = 𝕽 𝟐 = 𝒏−𝟏 Τ 𝒏+𝟏 = 𝟑. 𝟔 − 𝟏 Τ 𝟑. 𝟔 + 𝟏 = 𝟎. 𝟑𝟐
The average photon life time can be estimated from Fabry-Perot cavity photon lifetime equation as
3.6 1
𝜏𝑝ℎ = = 2.16 𝑝𝑠
3𝑥108 103 + 1 1
ln
2𝑥250𝑥10−6 0.32𝑥0.32

The maximum rate at which the laser diode can be modulated can be obtained as
1
1 1 2𝐽𝑡 2
𝑓𝑟 = −1 = 3.42 𝐺𝐻𝑧
2𝜋 10−9 𝑥2.16𝑥10−12 𝐽𝑡

This means that for direct modulation an injection laser diode has a modulation capability of a few
gigahertz only!!
J. Some Undesirable Effects in Laser
Thermal Effects :
T 
it  exp  
 T0 

T0 is the threshold temperature coefficient and it depends on the material as well as the structure
of the laser diode
▪ High-speed long-haul optical communication systems more sophisticated laser modules are used.
▪ These modules contain in-built thermoelectric or thermostatic cooler in a single package.

Figure: temperature
dependence on (a)
GaAlAs (b) InGaAsP
Aging Effects :
▪ The output light from a laser source also decreases with aging
▪ Various techniques used for controlling the bias current to maintain a constant
output power includes optical feedback technique, pre-distortion technique
▪ PIN detector (photodiode) in feedback mechanism to adjust bias current
Frequency Chirp :
▪ The fluctuation of carrier density and temperature change cause
phase variation in the cavity. This phase variation causes the increase
in the resonant frequency with time.
Noise :
The major components of noise in a laser diode include
(i) Phase or frequency noise
(ii) Reflection noise
(iii) Mode partition noise
▪ The phase (or frequency) noise arises from the difference in phase between
various randomly emitted (both spontaneous and stimulated) photons
▪ Reflection noise is caused by external reflection of the emitted optical signal.
Unwanted reflections from couplers, joints, splices usually return a portion of the
emitted optical signal back into the laser cavity
▪ Mode partition noise is associated with multimode lasers. It arises from the
intensity fluctuations of the longitudinal modes when the modes are not properly
stabilized
Relative Intensity Noise (RIN) :
▪ Relative intensity noise (RIN) is attributed to
random fluctuation in amplitude or intensity
of the output from an injection laser diode
▪ It leads to optical intensity noise.
▪ The origin of this noise may be temperature
variations or random nature of spontaneous
emission.
▪ Some of the photons generated through
spontaneous emission may resonate with the
cavity and get amplified. This may cause a
fluctuation in the laser output