Optically induced switching in CdZnTe

All-optical switching performances of the semiconductor ternary alloy CdZnTe have been characterized, operating on a signal at /spl lambda/=1.5 μm. The physical switching mechanism exploits both the electrooptic effect and near-infrared photoconductivity. The use of CdZnTe improves the recovery time constant by six orders of magnitude when compared to previously tested CdTe-based modules. Control fluences of less than 0.02 nJ/μm
²
and extinction ratios as high as 23 dB have been demonstrated when operating in the nanosecond temporal regime.