Multi-gigabit analog equalizers for plastic opticalfibers

Two new CMOS analog continuous-time equalizers for high-speed short-haul optical fiber communications are presented in this paper. The proposed structures compensate the limited bandwidth-length product of 1-mm SI-POF channels (45 MHz·100 m) and have been designed in a standard 0.18-μm CMOS process. The equalizers are aimed for multi-gigabit short-range applications, targeting up to 2 Gb/s through a 50-m SI-POF. The prototypes operate with a single supply voltage of only 1 V and overcome the severe limitations suffered by the widely used degenerated differential pair due to the low supply voltage.