Abstract

Laser arrays capable of both high-speed and multiple wavelength operation are important for high-capacity optical network applications based on high-density wavelength-division-multiplexing (HD-WDM) [1]. In addition, they can greatly enhance the potential capacity of optical interconnects and switching systems by using wavelength as an additional parameter. To date, the largest array of high-speed multi-wavelength lasers has been a 4-channel DFB array operating at 5 Gb/sec; however the processing of multiple-wavelength DFB laser arrays is highly complex and the number of elements is limited by the one-dimensionality of the array [2]. In this paper, we report a record aggregate speed of over 80 Gb/sec for a 16-wavelength, 2-dimensional monolithic vertical cavity surface-emitting laser (SEL) array.

© 1991 Optical Society of America