Patent ID: 6906306
Filing Date: 2005-06-14
Classification: H03F

Abstract:
1. A photodiode assembly mountable in a transistor outline can package, of the type including four leads extending therefrom, comprising: a photodiode for converting incident light into a photodiode current comprising an AC component indicative of an amplitude of the optical power of the incident light, and a DC component indicative of an average optical power of the incident light; a pre-amplifier for converting the AC component into a differential signal defined by a difference between a first alternating output signal and a second alternating output signal, complementary to the first alternating output signal; and a common-mode controller for controlling a common mode signal between the first and second alternating output signals based on the DC component; wherein the common mode signal and the differential output signal are combined for transmission via two of the four leads, whereby the common mode signal can be extracted from the differential output signal to provide an indication of the optical power of the incident light.