Widely Tunable Single/Dual RF Signal Generation by a Monolithic Three-Section DFB Laser

A three-section distributed feedback laser with a 2.5 InP/air pair of distributed Bragg reflectors (DBRs) was fabricated and analyzed in terms of its microwave generation capability. A widely tunable single radio frequency (RF) signal can be detected using optical heterodyning, and the tuning range is from 2 to 45 GHz. The incorporation of the third section provides an opportunity to present the dual RF operation when three emission peaks are near to each other in the wavelength domain. The proposed design provides a 21.3% enhancement in the RF tuning range compared with the range of a two-section laser (35.29 GHz versus 42.81 GHz). The compactness of the proposed device can be useful for future radio-over-fiber applications.