Tunable lasers

Tunable lasers are a key component for building flexible and streamlined optical networks capable of increasing functionality with lower overall network cost. It is in the nature of technological evolution that many avenues are initially explored with elaborate schemes. Despite the allure of ingenuity, however, the winning solutions are usually the simple ones that leverage an existing technology and market base. The outlined approach of full-band tunable lasers based on DFB technology meet the existing performance specifications and possess a cost structure that will ultimately displace static-wavelength DFBs, making tunability ubiquitous.