Broadband analog performance of laser diodes

The performance characteristics of semiconductor laser diodes for wideband analog transmission have been investigated. The distortion characteristics of such devices were determined by measurement of the laser's light-current transfer characteristic and also by means of multicarrier harmonic distortion measurements. The noise characteristics were determined by measurement of the laser's relative intensity noise. The performance of these devices at the system level was demonstrated by measuring the noise and distortion characteristics after transmission through optical fiber. The measurements indicate that distributed-feedback semiconductor lasers are viable candidates for deployment as sources for broadband analog transmission in fiber-optic transmission systems.<
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