ELECTRICAL PACKAGING IMPACT ON SOURCE COMPONENTS IN OPTICAL INTERCONNECTS

A simulation study of source module components for use within optical interconnect systems is described, SPICE models of laser diodes, CMOS drivers, and electrical packages are developed and exercised to evalua te overall source module performance. Performance metrics for power di ssipation, signal latency, wavelength chirp, and signal fidelity are u sed, The effects of laser diode threshold current, bias condition, and driving current level are determined with respect to these metrics, T he influence of driver type and electrical packaging technologies on s ource module performance is also evaluated, Transmission line models o f printed wiring board (PWB), tape automated bonding (TAB), and flip-c hip bonding (C4) are used to study package related effects, It is foun d that under appropriate operating conditions, PWB can achieve accepta ble noise, power, and latency performance for data rates up to 500 MHz while flip-chip bonding is required to exceed data rates of 800 MHz f or the cases studied.