Abstract

Efficient and stable high-speed wavelength conversion is a key function required in optical routing and switching systems. To overcome extinction ratio (ER) degradation and BER deterioration often found when using conventional semiconductor optical amplifiers in cross-gain modulation, new types of interferometric wavelength converters using optical cross-phase modulation have been recently proposed.^1,2 Promising devices have been realized using bulk active layers integrated with passive waveguides.^3,4 All-active multiple quantum well (MQW) layer structures, however, allow for strongly simplified and compact device realization, combined with sufficient differential gain and confinement factor for high-speed operation. First compact 3-port Mach-Zehnder-type MQW-based interferometric wavelength converters with excellent performance have been realized and operated penalty-free up to 5 Gbit/s.⁵

© 1996 Optical Society of America