Development of hybrid-integrated tunable receivers for multiwavelength computer networks

We discuss the development of tunable optical receivers for packet-switched multi-wavelength computer networks. The architecture of the tunable receivers consists of a planar waveguide grating demultiplexer, photodetector array and followed by transimpedance amplifiers with selection capability. The channel selection is based on sequential switching of the received optical signals in stages at the analog level. The receivers can accommodate 32 wavelength channels at around 1.55 μm region with channel access time of less than 40 ns.