Abstract

It is well known that GaAs has a large electro-optic (EO) coefficient. Therefore, GaAs integrated circuits and devices can be probed optically through the electro-optic effects produced by steady or transient voltages in the circuit. For example, Bloom et al(1) have shown that noninvasive electro-optic sampling of microwave circuits is useful for measuring device parameters. GaAs circuits can be tested using a transmission line formed on an electro-optic substrate. EO crystals are placed close to the device under test, and a sampling beam probes the crystal to measure the fringing fields of the transmission line. Unfortunately, this technique has limitations since the transmission line and crystal disturb the fields in the device under test. Techniques for non-perturbing in situ measurements, such as those investigated by Bloom, are more desirable since an external crystal is not required.

© 1992 Optical Society of America