Applied Optoelectronics Announces Availability of 25G Cooled LWDM Lasers

     Sugar Land, TX, February 10, 2020 – Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (Nasdaq: AAOI), a leading provider of fiber-optic access network products for the internet datacenter, cable broadband, telecom and fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) markets, today announced the availability of 25 Gbps local area network-wavelength division multiplexing (LWDM) cooled transistor outline (TO) packaged laser diodes for 5G front-haul applications.

     In emerging 5G networks, the front-haul link is the critical fiber-optic segment between the antenna unit (radio head) and the remotely located base station, from which connections to the wider telecommunications network emanate.  The 25G LWDM solution for 5G front-haul allows for sharing of the existing fiber infrastructure, reducing 5G network deployment costs, saving fiber resources, and improving 5G performance.  Because the remote radio heads are often installed outdoors in environmentally challenging locations, the ability to operate reliably over a wide operating temperature range is critical.  AOI’s 25G LWDM TO-Cans operate at industrial temperatures between -40°C and +85°C with low power consumption.  These devices are housed in a temperature controlled, hermetically sealed TO format.  The output power can exceed 9dBm and an eye mask margin (EMM) of greater than 30% is achievable with the IEEE 802.3cc standard eye mask.

     “As we begin to see widespread deployment of advanced 5G mobile communications networks in 2020, we believe that AOI’s ability to supply the needed LWDM channels and quantities of high-performance laser diodes is an important consideration for our customers,” comments David Chen, AOI’s AVP and Senior Director of Product Management.  “Our proprietary laser fabrication process and in-house epitaxy, fabrication, and packaging operations allow us to develop new varieties of laser diodes with the needed temperature operating parameters, and also rapidly transition these devices into high-volume production to meet our customers’ needs.”