Analog Devices' Low Voltage, Dual-Loop Laser Diode Drivers

It seems like there's a conference for you to attend no matter what your specialty is. If you're involved in fiber optics, you may be on your way home from last week's Fiber Optics Forum 2001 in Tokyo, Japan. Analog Devices chose the event to introduce two new products in its portfolio of optical networking laser diode drivers. These "anyrate" LDDs support data rates from 50 megabits per second (Mbps) to 3.3 gigabits per second (Gbps). ADI says that using dual-loop, manufacturers can use less expensive optics because the LDD compensates for variations that occur in laser diodes over time and temperature changes. Operating at reduced supply voltages, the new ADN2847 and ADN2848 support applications that include SONET OC-3/12/48, SDH STM-1/4/16, Fiber Channel, and Gigabit Ethernet modules. The ADN2848 targets 50 Mbps to 622 Mbps applications where low cost is a key requirement, and the ADN2847 supports data rates from 50 Mbps up to 3.3 Gbps. Both the LDDs operate from a single 3-V to 3.6-V supply. The ADN2847 and ADN2848 feature modulation currents of up to 80 mA and bias currents of up to 100 mA. Additional capabilities include laser fail and degrade alarms, automatic laser shutdown (ALS), bias current monitors, and modulation current monitors. The ADN2847 laser diode driver is available in both 7 mm x 7 mm 48-lead and 5 mm x 5 mm 32-lead chip-scale packages, and is priced at $23 in 1000 piece quantities. The ADN2848 is available in a 5 mm x 5 mm 32-lead chip-scale package and is priced at $11.25 in 1000 piece quantities.