Low power CMOS burst-mode laser driver for full service access network application

ATM-based passive optical networks (ATM-PON) such as full service access network (FSAN) require special burst-mode transmitters and receivers for the upstream direction (from the subscriber to the central office). This is necessary because multiple subscribers share the same optical fiber using time division multiple access (TDMA). A key component of such a PON system is the burst-mode transmitter which is located inside the optical network unit (ONU) at the subscriber end. It must be low in power consumption since it must run from a back-up battery during power outages, low cost in order to be competitive with regard to the copper-based infrastructure, and stable over a wide temperature range because it may be located outdoors. The burst-mode transceiver chip reported earlier consumes 300 mW (receiver and transmitter) at 50 Mb/s. The driver IC presented here consumes only 15 mW at 155 Mb/s, and, for the first time to the best of our knowledge, implements reliable automatic power control (APC) and a laser end-of-life detection function in a burst-mode driver. The chip was fabricated using a 3.3 V, 0.5 pm standard CMOS technology.