SUGAR LAND, Texas -- Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (AOI), a leading manufacturer of laser diodes, photodetectors, and optical modules for fiber optic communications systems, today announces a small form-factor pluggable transceiver designed for operation in colorless Optical Networking Terminals (ONTs) used in Wavelength Division Multiplexed Passive Optical Networks (WDM-PONs).

The new transceiver incorporates a specially-designed laser diode that accepts an injection-locking signal from a transmitter in the head-end portion of the WDM-PON. The transmission wavelength of the laser diode locks onto the wavelength of this locking signal. By utilizing this transceiver in the ONT, it is possible to design a single, “colorless” ONT that can operate at any wavelength needed in the upstream direction of the WDM-PON.

The current device supports WDM-PON applications where the upstream signals are in the optical C-band (from 1533-nm to 1560-nm) and the downstream signals are in the optical L-band (from 1573-nm to 1600-nm).

The device is electrically hot-pluggable and communicates over the 2-wire serial interface as specified in the SFP Multi Source Agreement. Digital diagnostic monitoring is provided in compliance with SFF-8472.

The current devices operate at speeds up to 125 Mbps and have fiber pigtails for flexible installation options within the ONT.

“AOI believes strongly in WDM-PON technology,” comments Dr. Chau-Hong Kuo, Transceiver Product Manager at AOI. “We believe that this new transceiver will accelerate the development of this next-generation PON technology by allowing our equipment manufacturer customers to build their systems around a pluggable standards-based SFP solution.”

Applied Optoelectronics Inc. (AOI)