ABSTRACT
High-speed photodetectors and photoreceivers play a critical role in fiber-optic-based telecommunication systems. Conversion of the optical signal in the fiber to an appropriate electronic signal for further processing, while minimizing noise and undesired distortion, is the primary function of photodetectors and receivers in this context. This chapter presents a brief outline of the fundamental physical processes utilized in common photodetectors, followed by a description of some of the most common photodetector types, as well as a discussion of some emerging photodetector designs. In practice, the electrical signal produced by a photodetector alone
is often inadequate for practical telecommunication systems; the photodetector must be combined with other optical or electronic amplification and signal processing to form a photoreceiver. The design of high-performance photoreceivers requires careful selection of devices, technologies, and architectures from an increasingly large array of potential choices. The features and limitations of the dominant photoreceiver designs for high-speed fiber-optic communication systems are discussed in the latter portion of the chapter.
