5 V, 10 Gbit/s optical receiver module using Si-bipolar IC

A 10 Gbit/s optical receiver module using a Si-bipolar IC has been developed. For low power and low cost, a pure Si-bipolar IC is used in place of a GaAs IC, which is commonly used for over 10 Gbit/s. To widen the frequency bandwidth, multifeedback techniques and a two-stage buffer configuration are used in the preamplifier IC. In addition, a differential circuit configuration is used for stable operation at high frequency. The IC was fabricated using 0.25 µm Si-bipolar technology. The module exhibits sensitivity of < –16 dBm for 10 Gbit/s data with an input dynamic range > 15 dB. Small power consumption of 410 mW is achieved with the single power-supply voltage of +5 V.