Chirp reduction in semiconductor lasers through injection current patterning

The introduction of patterned current fronts that modulate the transition b etween directly modulated optical bits allows for a strong reduction of the optical chirp in a single-mode semiconductor laser, as shown in the numeri cal integration of a standard model. Hence, optical transmission-of informa tion over much longer distances without signal deterioration and a substant ial increase in data transmission speed are possible. (C) 2001 American Ins titute of Physics.