Demultiplexing 2.48-Gb/s optical signals with a CMOS receiver array based on clocked-sense-amplifiers

A repeater array consisting of clocked-sense-amplifier-based optical receivers driving receivers driving 850-nm optical modulators is used to demultiplex a 2.48-Gb/s optical signal into eight 311-Mb/s optical data streams. The synchronous detection provided by the clocked receivers allows 2.48-Gb/s signals to be demultiplexed despite a repeater bandwidth of roughly 350 MHz. The repeater array contains 16 elements, is fully functional, and is realized in a hybrid MQW/CMOS smart pixel optoelectronic VLSI technology. The CMOS circuits are made in a 0.35-μm linewidth process. Total power dissipation for the entire array is 11.5 mW, and 120-fJ optical input signals are used.