Title :
Observation of switching energy dependence on illuminating beam area in the VSTEP optoelectronic switch
Author :
Beyzavi, K. ; Linke, R.A. ; Devlin, G.E. ; Ogura, I. ; Numai, T. ; Kasahara, K.
Author_Institution :
NEC Res. Inst., Princeton, NJ, USA
Abstract :
We have observed a strong dependence of the optical switching energy of a p-n-p-n VSTEP device on the area of the illuminated spot. We explain the area dependence in terms of a long diffusion time (/spl sim/1 μs) required for the photo-generated holes to reach a uniform distribution in the depleted p-layer and report results of a carrier diffusion calculation which supports this conclusion. This effect reduces the required optical switching energy by as much as a factor of five for the devices measured.
Keywords :
light emitting diodes; optical bistability; optical switches; phototransistors; semiconductor device models; semiconductor switches; thyristors; 1 mus; AlGaAs-GaAs; LED type device; VSTEP optoelectronic switch; area dependence; carrier diffusion calculation; depleted p-layer; heterojunction bipolar transistor; illuminated spot area; illuminating beam area; long diffusion time; p-n-p-n VSTEP device; photo-generated holes; switching energy dependence; thyristor action; Energy measurement; Lighting; Optical devices; Optical interconnections; Optical receivers; Optical switches; Pulse measurements; Repeaters; Stimulated emission; Time measurement;
Journal_Title :
Photonics Technology Letters, IEEE
