DDIT, Electrical and

Computer
Engineering Department

Optics and Optical Communication Systems

Lecture - 04: Optical Detectors

Instructor : Mubarek Abdulkadir(Msc)

March 2022
Dire Dawa,Ethiopia
Chapter 4: Optical Detectors in Fiber Optic Communications

4.1 Introduction to Photodetectors

4.2 Basic Requirements for detectors in Fiber optics

4.3 Types of Photodetectors

4.3.1 Positive-Intrinsic-Negative (PIN) and
4.3.2 Avalanche Photo-Detector (APD) diodes
4.3.3 APD Verses PIN
4.4 Optical Detection Principle
4.4.1 Photodetectors
4.4.2 Photodiodes
4.4.3 Materials for Photodetectors
4.5 Applications of Photodetectors
4.1 Introduction to Optical Detectors in Fiber Optics

•What is Photodetector?
•Photodetectors are devices, in which light form of photon is used to produce
electrons for conduction, by having the absorbed photon liberate a bound electron.
•It converts optical signal (light) to electrical signal (current/voltage.
Optical detectors perform the exact opposite function of that of the optical sources;
that is, they convert electric power into optical power.
How it works?
Most modern photodetectors operate on the basis of the internal photoelectric
effect.
The photoexcited electrons and holes remain within the material, increasing the
electrical conductivity of the material.
Electron-hole photogeneration in a semiconductor.

• absorbed photons generate free electron

hole pairs
• Transport of the free electrons and holes
upon an electric field results in a current .
• The design of optical receiver is much more complicated than that
of optical transmitter because the receiver must first detect weak,
distorted signals and then make decisions on what type of data was
sent.
4.2 Basic Requirements for detectors in Fiber optics
 Optical signal generally is weakened and distorted when it
emerges from the end of the fiber, the photodetector must
meet following strict performance requirements.
 High sensitivity at the operating wavelength of the source
 Short response time to obtain a desirable bandwidth
 Minimum noise contribution
 Be compatible with the physical dimensions of the fiber
Linear response over a wide range of light intensity
 Stability of performance characteristics
 Have a long operating lifetime
 Low bias voltage and Low cost
 Insensitive to temperature variations
 Have a Reasonable cost compared to other system components
 High quantum efficiency / high spectral sensitivity
4.3 Types of Photo Detectors

The primary operating wavelength regions for FO

communication systems are 850nm, 1310nm and 1550 nm.
There are two distinct photodetection which are used in
optical communication systems.
They are:
• 1. External photoelectric effect:
 Photomultiplier Tubes (PMT)
• 2. Internal photoelectric effect:
 PIN photodiodes
 Avalanche photodiodes
Positive-Intrinsic-Negative (PIN) and Avalanche Photo
Diode (APD) can meet most requirements in optical
communications, hence widely used as photo detectors.
4. 3.1 PIN Diodes

• The most common optical detector used with fiber-optic systems is the
PIN diode.
• The PIN diode is operated in the reverse-bias mode.
• The low junction capacitance of the PIN diode allows for very fast
switching.
• No internal gain, robust detector.
• Low bias voltage [10-50 V @ = 850 nm, 5-15 V @ = 1300 –1550 nm]
o A typical P-i-N photodiode consists of a highly-doped
transparent p-type contact layer on top of an undoped
absorbing layer (i) and an n-type highly doped contact layer on
the bottom.
o This diode is evolved mainly from one basic requirement: light
should be absorbed in the depletion region of the diode to
ensure that the electrons and holes are separated in the
electric field and contribute to the photocurrent, while the
transit time must be minimal.
o This implies that a depletion region larger than the absorption
length must exist in the detector. This is easily assured by
making the absorbing layer undoped. Only a very small voltage
is required to deplete the undoped region.
o An added advantage is that the recombination/generation time
constant is longest for undoped material, which provides a
minimal thermal generation current.
 pin energy-band diagram

Cut off wavelength:

hc 1.24 Cut off wavelength depends on the

c   μm
E g E g (eV ) band gap energy
4. 3.2 Advantages of P-I-N photodiode

• Intrinsic layer is thick, so more number of incident photons enter into this layer
and generate electron hole pair, so results in the high quantum efficiency of the
device.
• Reverse biasing voltage is small (usually 50) because the thickness of the
depletion region is controlled by the thickness of the intrinsic layer, not by
reverse voltage.
• High bandwidth ( Efforts to improve the bandwidth of 110 Ghz).
• Wavelength Response
 Silicon 400-1100 nm
 Germanium 800-1600 nm
 GaAs 400-1000 nm
 InGaAs 400-1700 nm

 InGaAsP 1100-1600 nm
4.3.2 Avalanche Photodiode (APD)
• Advanced version with internal gain M due to self multiplication
process.
• Photodiodes are sufficiently reverse biased during normal operation 
no current flow without illumination, the intrinsic region is fully
depleted of carriers
• APD has an internal gain M, which is obtained by having a high electric
field that energizes photo-generated electrons.
• These electrons ionize bound electrons in the valence band upon
colliding with them which is known as impact ionization
• The newly generated electrons and holes are also accelerated by the
high electric field and gain energy to cause further impact ionization
 This phenomena is the avalanche effect

• High bias voltage [250 V @  = 850 nm, 20-30 V @ = 1300–1550 nm]

4.3.3 Advantages & Drawbacks of APDs
• Advantages
 Provides an increase in sensitivity of between 5 dB to 15dB
over pi-n photodiodes i.e. detection of very low level light
signals.
 Wider dynamic range as a result of their gain variation with
response time and reverse bias.
 Drawbacks
 Fabrication difficulties due to their more complex structure and
hence increased cost.
 The random nature of the gain mechanism which gives an
additional noise contribution.
 Often high bias voltages required (50 to 400 V).
 The variation of the gain (multiplication factor) with temperature
i.e. temperature compensation is necessary to stabilize the
operation of the device.
4.3.4 APD Verses PIN
4.4 Optical Detection Principle
• The conversion of an optical into an electrical signal requires
the absorption of the incident light.
• The absorption leads to an excitation of an electron from the
valence to the conduction band.
• What is left in the valence band is a vacancy, which we call a
“hole”.
• Therefore, we speak about the
photo-generation of electron-hole
pairs, because the absorption
always leads to the generation of a
hole and an electron. Photogeneration of an electron hole pair.
4.4.1 Principles of Photodiodes
• As a photon flux Φ penetrates into a semiconductor, it will be absorbed as it progresses through the
material.

• If αs(λ) is the photon absorption coefficient at a wavelength λ, the power level at a distance x into the
material is

Absorbed photons
trigger photocurrent
Ip in the external
circuitry
4.4.2 Responsivity ()
Detector Responsivity is the ratio of output current to
input optical power. Hence this is the efficiency of the
device. I p q
  mA/mW
P0 h

APD’s have an internal gain M, hence

 APD   PIN M
 where, M = IM/Ip
 IM : Mean multiplied current

M = 1 for PIN diodes

4.4.3 Quantum Efficiency
• Quantum Efficiency η is the ratio of primary
electron-hole pairs created by incident photon to the
photon incident on the diode material energy hν and
is given by

 Ip is the photocurrent generated by a steady-state

optical power
 Pin incident on the photodetector.
 

When λ<< λc absorption is low hc

c 
When λ > λc; no absorption Eg
4.4.4 Materials for Photo detectors
 Most commonly used material for photodetectors are
1. Silicon
2. Gallium Arsenide (GaAs)
3. Germanium Indium Phosphide ( GInP).
 There wavelengths response depends on their composition
4.5 Phot0fetecyot’s Applications
• Wireless Optical communication
• Fiber Optical communications
• Laser guided missiles, Laser warning , Laser range finders

• Automotive anti collision optical radar

• Laser alignment and control systems
• Spectral analysis (medical )

• Film processing
• Flame monitoring
• Scintillator
• Spectral monitoring of Earth ozone layer (environmental)
• Telecommunication
 Lasers, modulators, fibers, detectors for communication systems
 Free-space optical links
• Information and Communication Technology
 CCD and CMOS sensors for imaging
 Data storage and retrieval (CD, DVD, BluRay)
 Optical interconnects (mainly in high performance computing
context today)
• Sensors and spectroscopy
 Smart cameras for image processing/machine vision
 Many, many applications, including sensors for measuring:
 Position, distance, thickness etc.
 Angular rate (ring laser/fiber gyroscopes)
 Gas concentration (using absorption)
• Security
 Intrusion detection
 Laser radar (LIDAR)
• Lighting
 LEDs for indoor lighting
 LEDs and Lasers for artistic lighting
• Energy
 Solar cells
• Bio photonics
 Optical tweezers, optical scalpels
 Optical tomography
• Military
 Surveillance
 Weapon guidance
 Countermeasures and laser guns
WE CAN’T IMAGINE MODERN
TECHNO-WORLD WITHOUT
FIBER OPTICS!!

Thank You