Digital Non-Linear Transmitter Equalization for PAM-N-Based VCSEL Links Enabling Robust Data Transmission of 100 Gbit/s and Beyond

Abstract

This paper demonstrates why VCSEL-based transmitter systems are not able to capitalize on higher-order PAM modulation formats (such as PAM-4) to push the link data rate towards 100 Gbit/s with BER of better than 10−5. First, the non-linear and biasing-dependent VCSEL behavior is analyzed in great detail to prove why state-of-the-art VCSELs with linear equalization are not able to reach these bandwidth targets. Consequently, based on an enhanced VCSEL model, a digital non-linear transmit equalizer is proposed to overcome voltage-dependent relaxation frequency shifts as well as data-dependent VCSEL bandwidth variations. The proposed digital non-linear equalizer is compared with a standard linear FFE structure using PAM-4 transmission experiments of 100 Gbit/s and beyond. This way, the proposed non-linear equalizer reveals a BER improvement of more than 30-fold compared to a linear FFE at a data rate of 80 Gbit/s. Finally, at 112 Gbit/s PAM-4 the non-linear equalizer was successfully demonstrated at a BER of 1.5·10−7.