Method of modulating an optical wavelength with an opto-electronic laser with integrated modulator
AssigneeAgility Communications, Inc.
InventorsGregory Fish, Larry Coldren
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method of converting an optical wavelength includes providing a wavelength converter assembly with a photodetector and a laser with a common epitaxial structure. The expitaxial structure has areas of differing bandgap. An optical input having a first wavelength at the wavelength converter assembly is absorbed. A first electrical signal is generated from the photodetector in response to the optical input. The first electrical signal is conditioned to produce a conditioned first electrical signal. A second electrical signal is generated from the conditioned first electrical signal. A laser output is generated from a gain medium of the laser at a second wavelength in response to the second electrical signal.
Claims35
A method of modulating an optical wavelength using a diode laser assembly, comprising:
- producing an output from a tunable laser resonator formed in an epitaxial structure on a substrate, the tunable laser resonator including first and second reflectors, a gain section and a phase section, the gain section and the phase section each being positioned between the first and second reflectors, wherein the output wavelength is tunable over a wider wavelength range than is achievable by index tuning and the wider wavelength range is represented by Δλ/λ>Δn/n;
- modulating the output from the tunable laser resonator using a modulation stage formed with at least a first section and a second section in the epitaxial structure outside of the tunable laser resonator, wherein separate electrical connections are provided to the first and second sections of the modulation stage that are configured to control an amplitude and phase response of the output from the tunable laser resonator;
- and
- coupling an output from the modulation stage to a following optical assembly using a coupler formed in the epitaxial structure, the coupler being positioned and configured to receive the output from the modulation stage, to reduce back reflections to the modulation stage, and to couple the output from the modulation stage to the following optical assembly.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.