An optical tunable laser design (100) for the optic telecommunication
industry is disclosed in this invention. This new design is economical,
reliable, robust and with superior optical performances. The design
offers broadband tunability, high output power, narrow laser line-width
and high SMSR. And in addition, the tunable laser is distinguishable from
conventional designs by the mere facts that there are no moving parts,
therefore, making it very reliable, and the tuning method of this
invention is non-thermal and non-mechanical making its tuning very fast
in the sub-millisecond range. In the manufacturing front, it is low cost
and easy to produce. It can be achieved with automation equipment like
those used in the IC placement and PC assembly industry, therefore, the
products as that disclosed in this invention can be provided with
significantly reduced production costs and marketed with very competitive
price. The side-mode-suppression ratio (SMSR) is further increased by
implementing an etalon (128) having a specific fineness to cooperate with
the Acousto-optical tuning filter (AOTF) (120).