Picosecond Laser System for High Speed Characterization of Monolithic Devices
Abstract
Accurate characterization of high-speed electronic circuitry requires the introduction of optical sampling as a method of generating and measuring large electrical bandwidths. The optical sampling techniques that can be employed for measuring the electrical response of a circuit consist of electro- optic sampling 1,2 and photoconductive switching 3,4. In electro-optic sampling, the fields of a propagating electrical pulse induce a transient birefringence in an electro-optic crystal which, in turn, rotates the polarization of an optical probe pulse transmitted through the crystal. The time resolution of the polarization rotation is an indirect measurement of the time evolution of hte propagating pulse as it passes the crystal. In addition, the crystal can be dipped into the fringing fields of the propagating electrical pulse above the circuit substrate, allowing for high spatial resolution while remaining noncontacting. In photoconductive switching, a small gap between two biased, transmission line conductors laid down on a semiconducting substrate can be electrically closed by an optical pulse focused onto the gap. This results in the generation of an electrical pulse whose shape and duration are determined by the laser pulsewidth, the circuit characteristics of the gap and transmission line and the photo-excited carrier lifetime of the substrate.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 31, 1989
- Accession Number
- ADA227372
Entities
People
- M. C. Downer
Organizations
- University of Texas at Austin