10.57647/spre.2026.1001.02

A Low-Power CNTFET-Based Optical Communication Receiver for 40 Gbps Applications

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  • Nazanin Zamani1,
  • Mehdi Amoon*1,2,
  • Zahra Alaie1,2,
  • Mahmoud Daneshvar Farzanegan1,2,
  1. Department Engineering, Na.C., Islamic Azad University, Najafabad, Iran
  2. Digital Processing and Machine Vision Research Center, Na.C., Islamic Azad University, Najafabad, Iran

Received: 2025-10-10

Revised: 2025-12-01

Accepted: 2026-01-21

Published in Issue 2026-03-31

Copyright (c) 2026 Nazanin Zamani, Mehdi Amoon, Zahra Alaie, Mahmoud Daneshvar Farzanegan (Author)

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Zamani, N., Amoon, M., Alaie, Z., & Daneshvar Farzanegan, M. (2026). A Low-Power CNTFET-Based Optical Communication Receiver for 40 Gbps Applications. Signal Processing and Renewable Energy (SPRE), 10(1). https://doi.org/10.57647/spre.2026.1001.02
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Abstract

This paper presents an optical receiver system for 40 Gbps communication applications in 32 nm carbon nanotube field-effect transistor (CNTFET) technology. The architecture consists of a modified regulated cascode (MRGC)-based transimpedance amplifier (TIA), followed by limiting amplifiers (LAs). The TIA is designed using the  methodology to optimize performance and power efficiency.

   Simulation results indicate that the modified TIA achieves a transimpedance gain of 56.6 dBΩ, a −3 dB bandwidth of 28 GHz, an input-referred noise current of 14 pA/√Hz, and a power consumption of only 177 µW. The TIA is fully transistor-based and occupies a compact 2240 nm × 1216 nm chip area. The LA stage provides a voltage gain of 10.3 dB, a bandwidth of −3 dB at 32 GHz, and power consumption of 382 µW, in an area of 11.14 µm². The optical receiver system demonstrates a transimpedance gain of 86.9 dBΩ, a −3 dB bandwidth of 34.2 GHz, total power consumption of 1387 µW, and occupies a chip area of 48.40 µm². All simulations are performed at a supply voltage of ±0.45 V, with the photodiode and load capacitors set to 10 fF. The gain, bandwidth, and input-referred noise characteristics of the TIA are derived analytically and discussed using the  design methodology. Both analytical and simulation results confirm the suitability of the topology as a low-power optical receiver for next-generation communication systems.

Keywords

  • Optical Receiver,
  • Transimpedance Amplifier,
  • Low Power,
  • CNTFET
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