2014 Volume E97.C Issue 7 Pages 767-772
An optical flip-flop circuit with a single semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) using two orthogonal polarization states is proposed. The optical set / reset input and output signals are at a single wavelength. The flip-flop circuit consists of an SOA, a polarization combiner, a polarization splitter, two directional couplers, and two phase shifters. No continuous light source is required to operate the circuit. In this paper, we theoretically analyze the operation performance. Polarization dependence in SOA is considered in the analysis at a single wavelength operation, and numerically simulated results are presented. We confirm that the flip-flop circuit with a feedback-loop length of 15 mm can be operated at switching time of around 3 ns by 1 ns set / reset pulses. The flip-flop performance is discussed from viewpoints of transient overshoot and contrast at the steady on-off states.
