Transimpedance optical preamplifier having a common-collector front end

A simple PIN photodiode-bipolar transistor (PIN-BJT), direct-coupled, transimpedance, optical preamplifier suitable for fabrication in monolithic IC form is described. The preamplifier basically consists of a common-collector, common-emitter configuration with shunt feedback. Measurements indicate that the receiver is capable of a sensitivity of –35.8 dBm at 140 Mbit/s for an error rate of 10–