Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. announced a new line of next-generation laser components enabling ultra-high-speed bandwidth cable broadband infrastructure. AOI's new laser components are used as transmitters in cable TV head-end applications where they aggregate video and broadband signals onto the optical fiber for transmission to the consumer. The new devices are designed for use at higher frequencies, such as those specified by the recently ratified DOCSIS 3.1 cable internet standard.

The new transmitter lasers apply dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM), which combines tightly-spaced wavelengths from different laser sources onto a single optical fiber. With the new lasers, service providers will be able to deliver up to 79 NTSC analog channels plus additional QAM digital CATV signals per wavelength. Compared to the previous generation of similar lasers, these new designs deliver 44% greater bandwidth above 550 MHz for more QAM channels and enhanced total bandwidth capacity.

The new generation of lasers can support RF frequencies up to 1.2 GHz, and offer low chirp (50MHz/mA) to enable transmission distances up to 60 km. These features are combined with low second- and third-order distortions to provide the greater degree of tolerance for system impairments. The lasers are packaged in a 14-pin "butterfly" housing, which includes an integrated thermoelectric cooler for precise wavelength control and standard OC-48 pin assignments.

AOI manufactures the QAM laser chip in-house at its laser fabrication facility in Houston, Texas. AOI's components are the key to the next generation of cable broadband equipment needed by the CATV industry and offered by AOI.