Development and characterization of 100Gb/s 940nm VCSELs for multimode optical links

The market for 100Gb/s per lane multimode (MM) vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) continues to be driven by the growing demand from data centers, cloud storage, and enterprise networks. Low cost and energy efficient VCSEL-based multimode links are especially suited for the high speed interconnections (HSI) that facilitate generative artificial intelligence (AI). The VCSEL technologies are largely shaped by the Fibre-channel and the Ethernet standards, and more recently by the Terabit Bidi MSA and InfiniBand requirements. In this paper, we present the development and performance of a 940nm multimode VCSEL with 3-dB small-signal modulation bandwidth exceeding 25GHz over temperature and relative intensity noise (RIN) below -145dB/Hz, suitable for 100Gb/s per lane data transmission. The VCSEL's 940nm center wavelength is within the wavelength range directed by IEEE 802.3 VR4 and offers the advantages of higher differential gain and lower thermal impedance. Large-signal performance at 100 Gb/s as well as device reliability will also be presented.