Energy Efficiency of VCSELs in the Context of Short-Range Optical Links

We present results from an investigation of the energy efficiency of vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) under large signal modulation. We show that the most important factor influencing the energy consumption of the VCSELs is the required optical modulation amplitude, which drives other VCSEL design requirements. The required optical modulation amplitude also depends on the optical link design. Through this dependence, it is possible to better understand the energy consumption of complete short-range optical links.