"...Elantec Semiconductor today unveiled its newest high speed laser driver IC (EL6244C) ideally suited for the design of a faster optical pickup unit (OPU), an integral component of CD-R/W (read/write) drives. The new laser driver can used for designing CD-R/W drives with speeds of 20X or more.

The EL6244C integrates the APC (automatic power control) amplifier with the three current channels needed for the read, erase, and write laser drive power levels. These three laser power levels are compliant with the Orange Specification Standard for CD-R and CD-R/W write strategy formats. In quantities of 10,000 units, the EL6244C in a 16-pin QSOP package is priced at $2.50 each. Samples are available now, with production lead times of 10 to 12 weeks..."