Semiconductor laser diode optical amplifiers/gates in photonic packet switching

In this paper, we will describe how semiconductor laser diode optical amplifiers/gates can be used in the photonic packet switching systems based on wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) techniques. First, we show that cross-gain modulation (XGM) can be suppressed when the device is used in the transparent condition of the waveguide material even when the input signal power exceeds +18 dBm. We then discuss an appropriate encoding for the optical signal. Experimental results show that high bit rate Manchester-encoding enables the use of semiconductor laser diode optical amplifiers/gates in the gain condition as well as the transparent condition. Finally, a new photonic packet receiver which utilizes a semiconductor laser diode optical amplifier as a packet power equalizer is proposed. This receiver accepts 17 dB power fluctuation at nanosecond speed for 10 Gb/s Manchester-encoded signal.