New Photonics Paper: Extended-Reach Transmission with Self-Injection-Locked VCSELs

New Photonics Paper: Extended-Reach Transmission with Self-Injection-Locked VCSELs

Our latest paper on 850 nm and 880 nm self-injection-locked VCSELs and extended-reach transmission over standard single-mode fiber is now available in Photonics.

The work investigates how laser chirp interacts with fiber dispersion to improve transmission performance. In his LinkedIn announcement, Nikolay Ledentsov highlights four key findings:

Key findings

  • EXTENDED REACH
    The announcement highlights transmission beyond 1 km using short-wavelength VCSELs over standard single-mode fiber.
  • ENHANCED PERFORMANCE
    Laser chirp and chromatic dispersion can work together to reduce the bit error ratio and improve the received signal.
  • ROBUSTNESS
    The reported performance remains stable when connectors are added or the fiber is bent.
  • SIMPLICITY
    The devices can operate without an optical isolator.

The paper details a 32 Gb/s NRZ transmission experiment over 1 km using an 850 nm VCSEL, with a Hi780 launch section to excite the fundamental fiber mode.

Unequalized eye diagrams at 32 Gb/s: (a) back-to-back optical link, (b) after 1 km of fiber, and (c) pattern-generator reference.
Unequalized 32 Gb/s eye diagrams: (a) back-to-back optical link; (b) after 1 km of fiber; (c) electrical pattern-generator reference. Figure 9 from Chen et al., Photonics (2026). © 2026 the authors. Reproduced without modification under CC BY 4.0.

Read the open-access paper

Chen et al. Photonics 2026, 13(9), 843.
Published 5 September 2026.
DOI: 10.3390/photonics13090843

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